Iberian swords - Falcatas

HISTORY OF THE IBERIAN FALCATA

There is no doubt that when talking about Antiquity in Iberia, the first thing we think about is the sword of the Hispanics, known as falcata , even the case that the Hispanic of Antiquity was not conceived without his deadly and terrifying sword. But let's investigate more on this topic. The first falcatas found, by archaeologists, were attributed to the Romans, and thus they are shown in some writings as “Roman swords-machetes” to later be called “ falcata sword ”.

In the 19th century, and within the nationalist protest processes that spread throughout Europe, the interest of the Spanish people in their pre-Roman past also arose. All of this, together with the discovery of many falcatas in the Los Collados necropolis, in Almedinilla , led researchers to consider this weapon as essentially Iberian and not Roman. And within the broad spectrum of war events of the time, the term "guerrilla warfare" was also assigned as a properly Iberian way of warfare.

There are several theories about the origin of the falcata . The theories of Maluquer de Motes, which assigned an origin to it in Iberia itself. Another theory defended by Bosch Gimpera , attributing a Central European origin linked to the Hallstatt culture, was rejected before new certainties appeared in 1944. The third theory, on which there is a broad consensus for its admission as the closest to the truth, is decided for a Mediterranean origin, specifically in the Balkans. This raises a new reason for discussion, not yet resolved. How did the falcatas arrive in the Iberian Peninsula? Some incline that it was the Greeks, who had many Iberian mercenaries in their armies. Others attribute it to the Etruscans. Let's admit it was the Greeks, but that still doesn't bring us to the origin of this weapon. The same Greeks place the origin in Persia, from there it passed to the Greeks of Asia Minor, and from these to the Greeks of the continent. It is a weapon used both in Persia and in many other places, mainly due to its original design, having multiple variations of its characteristics in different cultures, but maintaining the essential elements of the falcata .

The term falcata was not used in Antiquity, but is more modern, coming from the Latin falx , which means sickle. Ovid calls it ensis falcatus , which translates to sickle sword. References to this model of weapons can be found in numerous sources, one of them Homer's Iliad, but they are named as machaira or kopis , which are nouns that designate different elements, in addition to swords. That is, we are dealing with polysemic terms. However, according to the Greek writings machaira designates the sword similar to the falcata , and the same can be said of the word kofis , which we can see in the works of Xenophon.

Although few doubt its Mediterranean origin, the Iberian falcata is distinguished by its peculiarities: Its length is shorter, but it counteracts this with a greater width. It has a double edge, which leads us to think that this weapon, intended for fighting on horseback, was adopted to be used by infantry. Another particularity of the Iberian falcata is that it is not used as a cutting weapon, but as a direct sword towards the vulnerable parts of the opponent, mainly torso and abdomen. In another context, it was said that they had to reinforce their shields in the Punic Wars, due to the falcatas , a totally uncertain fact, since they had known about the weapon for a long time. The reinforcement was due to the latenian straight swords , carried by the Gallic and Celtiberian mercenaries. From this sword is born the gladius hispaniensis .

HOW IS THE FALCATA IBERA

Today we have at our disposal a large number of original Iberian falcatas , more than 600 units. It is a strong and ferocious handling weapon, preferably offensive in a combat class in which the shield is an essential piece. The blade has a curved outline, more often in the ibera falcata we see a third part of the blade that presents a tortuous profile. In the final third, a counter-edge is added that is typical of the Iberian falcatas , which indicates that this weapon was designed as an infantry weapon, dedicated to cruel and deadly hand-to-hand combat. There is no balance between the handle and the blade, since it concentrates the power of the impact in the last third of the weapon, looking for an ax effect, being able to reach the enemy over the shield. Since the hilt closes the warrior's fist, it is very difficult for the warrior to lose his weapon or for the hilt to slip.

It is a short weapon (length of the blade 55 cm.), in relation to the Greek and Italic types that reached a length of more than 80 cm. Its grip is closed around the fist. Most have horse figures with ornaments, and are made by lengthening the blade to which wood or bone handles are added. The blade is created from a piece of iron. Sometimes three pieces are joined using the hot-beating technique. Despite the fact that some historians considered the Iberians and their forging techniques to be very advanced, it is a false belief, since the Greeks and Romans were much more advanced in the art of forging. The iron steel was produced by capturing the carbon from the charcoal used in the forging process. Sometimes the swords were buried, and by oxidation of the magnetite the peculiar black color of the Iberian falcata was obtained. As aesthetic and at the same time functional accessories, we could sometimes find silver decorations. In other cases, and for purely decorative purposes, several cracks could be observed. We have been able to verify the union of his falcata with the warrior by investigating various burials, in which the deceased went to the grave together with his sword, which had previously been rendered useless. Although there has been an attempt to link the falcata with Iberia as a purely Iberian weapon, this is not true, since it was very common throughout the Mediterranean.

HOW MUCH IS AN IBERIAN FALCATA?

The Iberian falcata is a curved iron or steel sword, whose length ranged from a 55 cm fork. at 60 cm. Its handle was usually adorned with figures of birds or horses.

WHAT WAS THE SWORD OF THE IBEROS CALLED?

It was called a falcata , and it is a sword with a curved blade of Asian origin, although historically it has been associated with the peoples of the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula. There is no doubt that the falcata is one of the most representative weapons of Antiquity.

WHO DEFEATED THE IBEROS?

The Iberians were defeated by the Romans led by Cato, in the so-called Battle of Ampuries , in a surprise assault. There 20,000 Romans defeated 40,000 Iberians. The battle lasted a whole day. The following morning, robbery and looting operations began, even razing the reconquered territory. The submission of the Iberians was conclusive.