The Gun

The most recognizable weapon in the world is the AK-47. [1] Since its inception in 1949, the weapon has been mass produced in over 20 countries and has become a staple of rebellions and national armies alike. There is nothing special about the design of the gun. Lined up along a wall, 20 of them would be identical. Due to the ease of mass production, there are more AK-47s than any other gun in the world. In this regard, they are the exact opposite of the swords that I have researched for this project. There is nothing that is customized or handmade about them, they were not created for one specific person, and their sole intention is to be a speedy, easy to handle killing machine.

The concept for this project emerged from this polarity. The original PMA blade inspired me through its sole design element in the pommel. Dropping off at the corners to form the shape of a football, the viewer is drawn to it, but it is also unsuspecting. The figure is smooth, counteracting  sharpness of the blade and highlighting the skill with which the sword was made. It is the opposite of an AK-47. What would happen if the craftsmanship of a medieval blade met the most replicated model of weapon in the history of the planet? How would a blacksmith from arguably the most talented era of weapon-making approach an AK-47? Assuming that the mechanics remained the same, where would embellishments be added? Upon finishing this piece in the Carpenter media lab, I sat back in my chair and stared at it. I was pleased, but it felt odd. It looked so incorrect. Even though images are not necessarily things that can be right and wrong, there was something about it that appeared genuinely like an incorrect fact. Why? What was wrong about it? All the manipulated images on the screen came from real objects. Nothing was drawn or otherwise rendered from my imagination. It then occurred to me that the same reason I forgot about blacksmiths is the same reason it looks wrong. I had internalized the notion that weapons are supposed to all look the same. They are mass produced, like the AK, and they do not have any elements that could be attributed to the user that were added during the weapon’s inception. The goal of the work is to attack the reinterpret a modern weapon as customized to a customer, calling attention to the singularity of medieval swords and the ingenious work of the blacksmiths who created them.

The first of the embellishments added to the gun was the replacement of the stock with a Brazil-Nut pommel. Developed in the mid-tenth century, the Brazil-Nut pommel is an example of a trend in swordmaking. [2] There is no real reason why pommels are shaped the way that they are. Their purpose, in simple terms, is to provide a counterweight to the blade and to provide a stopper at the end of the hilt to avoid slippage. This could take any shape. In his book on medieval swords, Kelly Devries writes that the hilt and pommel of swords over time was left to “personal preference” and not because of a practical purpose. [3] This is fascinating, and reminds me of the stock on an AK-47. Yes, it has a necessary purpose to rest the gun on your shoulder, but the design of the gun is not optimized for this task. The stock of and AK-47 and the stock of a musket from the 17th century do not have much variation. It is the design of the gun. Because of this connection, I removed the stock completely and fixed the Brazil-Nut pommel that sat atop the Philadelphia Museum of Art sword that inspired the entire project. Interestingly, the pommel would actually work as a stock if need be.

The next altered component was the added gold to the grip and gems to the clip. Einhard writes in Charlemagne’s biography (ca. 837) that the hilt of the king’s sword was “jewelled.”  [4] This is in line with the fact that when having a sword constructed, royalty or patrons would ask for the hilt and pommel to be decorated with gold and gems because this was the part of the sword that was visible at all times. The blade would also sometimes have decoration but since it was sheathed, those who saw the sword would mostly only see the hilt. The design chosen was the belt buckle from Sutton Hoo. This was chosen over an embellishment that would actually go on a sword because in no sword would the hilt be as wide as the grip of an AK-47. The size is approximately the size of a large belt buckle, so instead of enlarging a smaller element, I decided to use the belt buckle for its aesthetic quality in its realistically sized setting. In a similar vein, the gems would typically go on the blade, but given that the barrel of a gun is not as wide as a blade, I placed them on the clip.

The next component was the inscription. Oakeshott writes that inscriptions would often be written on the blade, and would be often taken from biblical verses. [5] Specifically, he features a sword with an inscription from the 71st Psalm written up the center of the blade. This inspired the decision to use that particular Psalm on the forestock. I decided to translate it to English and put it in a simple font to highlight the artisanship of the original inscription fonts, since it honestly looks rather silly in English.

The last and most theoretical of the changes was the lengthening of the barrel and forestock to emulate the preference in longer swords during the medieval period. Oakeshott writes that the improvements from Type X swords to Type XI swords came from the “elegance” that had become associated with longer swords. [6] Later types kept this length. The AK-47 is a relatively stubby gun compared to it’s competitors, so I felt that elongating it would give it a customized, albeit peculiar, function.

While there was never a sword that had every single function I added to the Blacksmith-47 in one place, the concept of a customized sword imposed on a modern weapon is created in this piece. Embellishment style from actual swords make the Blacksmith-47 a strange looking piece, but achieves its goal.  

Works Cited

1. Chivers, C. J. The Gun. New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2011. Print. 13

2. Halpin, Andrew. “Irish Medieval Swords c. 1170-1600.” Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. Section C: Archaeology, Celtic Studies, History, Linguistics, Literature, vol. 86C, 1986, pp. 183–230., www.jstor.org/stable/25506140. 187

3. DeVries, Kelly. Medieval Military Technology. Peterborough: Broadview, 1998. Print. 24

4. Einhard. Einhard: The Life of Charlemagne. Trans. Samuel Epes Turner. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1880. Fordham University Medieval Sourcebook. Web. 20 Mar. 2017.

5. Oakeshott, Ewart. The Archeology of Weapons: Arms and Armour from Prehistory to the Age of Chivalry. London: Lutterworth, 1960. Print. 216

6. Oakeshott, Ewart. The Archeology of Weapons: Arms and Armour from Prehistory to the Age of Chivalry. London: Lutterworth, 1960. Print. 205