| Last week was Our 50thposting of Sword Press – which under other circumstances might qualify this One for some sort of modest ‘atta-boy’ award involving beer and an affectionate but manly pat-on-the-head. However as I’ve learned to my sorrow, my iron-fisted, steel-hearted, way-too-fast-to-hit, workaholic Master insists that it’s all part of ‘business normal’ in getting a weekly blog out to press on time – and that segues into this weeks offering. That said, a ‘Best of Sword Press’ just has to be in the works – somewhere … in the bottom of this pile …. Or maybe that pile …
Hidden Swords
EDMONTON JOURNAL (Alberta) 14 July 12 B.C. man’s sword collection expected to fetch $500,000 (Randy Boswell) Drats! There was a true treasure of historical blades collected and stored within the back yard of the Academie Duello – and nobody found out in time to try for a tour of the collection before it was shipped overseas for auction! Antiquarian Gary Bates sent his 400-item collection — “a treasure of 18th- and 19th-century British sabres” to London for sale. One of the highlights of this collection is a sword made for Prime Minister Lord Grenville while he was a cavalry officer in the 1790’s.
Scottish Swords in Action?
SALT LAKE TRIBUNE (Utah) 14 July 12 Utahns wield swords at annual competition The United Clans Swordsman Association’s annual sword fighting competition apparently went off as planned.
Swords for Business and Pleasure
BUSINESS WEEK (New York, New York) 15 June 12 A Sword-Fighting Lesson With Neal Stephenson (Brad Stone) As part of the past coverage of Neal Stephenson’s ‘Clang’ sword-fighting game initiative – we have this little tidbit on his perceptions of actually studying and ‘fighting’ with swords. After reading this you may better understand Stephenson’s approach to his game design and why things will happen the way they will with your cutting edge Wii-game controller when the game rolls out. Of note; one of the problems of making the game sale-able outside of the sword-smart community will be to make it ‘entertaining’ AND historical at the same time. ““Historically accurate long sword fighting just isn’t very cool,” Stephenson says. “It tends to be over very quickly.””
Swords for Fitness
CBS (New York, New York) 07 July 12 Sword play: Latest exercise trend (Lucy Craft ) Though not WMA/HEMA related, this item describes some of the attraction of sword play training as a fitness discipline in its’ own right. Quote of the Week: “… there's nothing cooler than women crossing swords”.
A Sword Exonerated
ODESSA NEWS (Ukraine) 21 June 21 Историческое фехтование. Одесскому рыцарю тюрьма не светит Rostislav Miroshnichenko, a Ukrainian WMA student was found innocent of ‘criminal liability’ for carrying a replica weapon that was part of his training kit. As Master Devon Boorman mentioned in a June posting; ‘even’ if ‘legally’ you’re ‘in the right’, make things easy for yourself and the intervening authorities – carry your fighting kit discretely, keep it to the proper venues and if possible, carry appropriate documentation that supports your good and legal intentions.
Snippits:
THE GUARDIAN (London, UK) 08 July 12 Gentlemen compete in the Chap Olympiad For those of you that wonder if your Bartitsu-skills have any utility in this fast-paced, fashion-forward, downtown-bike-lane-dominated world … |
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