Oakeshott Type XXI Cinquedea Paired Renaissance Era Swords

Date: ca. 1500

Culture: Italian

Medium: Steel, Copper Alloy, Horn

Dimensions: L., 11 15/16 in. (30.3 cm);

L. of blade, 7 5/8 in. (19.35 cm);

Greatest W., 3 3/16 in. (8.08 cm);

Greatest W. of blade, 2 3/16 in. (5.54 cm);

Greatest thickness of blade, 5/16 in. (0.79 cm); Wt., 8 oz. (200 g)

Credit Line: Gift of William H. Riggs, 1913 Accession Number: 14.25.1264

*Editor's note: Although two Cinquedea are presented here only one set of measurements has been recorded by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is presumably the measurements for the larger of the two. The two appear to be a set, perhaps intended to be fought with by way of dual wielding.

Note also that though this pair are veritably cinquedeas they are somewhat outside of Oakeshott's estimations of the type, nonetheless I believe given their hilts and broad blades that even Oakeshott himself would group them in Oakeshott Type XXI

For more information on Type XXI see this extract from Ewart Oakeshott's Records of the Medieval Sword: sword-site.com/thread/204/oakeshott-type-records-medieval-sword

Source: metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/22373?rpp=60&pg=12&rndkey=20131117&ao=on&ft=*&what=Edged+weapons&pos=666