A HISTORY OF DURHAM 



and i inch at the tip. It is entirely of iron and a solid forging, and very 

 closely resembles a sword found at Canwick Common, near Lincoln. 1 The 

 guard is of the curved form, the hilt 3 inches long, and the pommel has a 

 curved base, the knob being solid and heavy in order to counterbalance the 

 weight of the blade. The attenuated form of the handle indicates that it 

 was furnished with a leather wrapping or wooden mount. The other sword 

 is now 28 inches in length, and is much corroded. It has been very highly 

 finished, and some portions of its polished surface retain considerable traces of 

 inlaying with gold. All indications of the guard, the hilt, and the pommel 

 are gone, and it is not unlikely that its original length was as much as 

 3 feet. 



The scythes average 15 inches in length with blades if inches in width. 

 They have tangs at right angles to the blades, one of which is 4 inches 

 long, with which they were attached to whatever form of handle was used 

 to wield them. Two rings are possibly the remains of harness buckles. 

 The larger one is circular, 3^ inches in diameter, the ends overlap, and are 

 welded together with a strap, very rudely attached. The smaller one is of 

 rectangular form, 3^ inches by 2 inches. The two objects for which it is 

 most difficult to suggest a use are two bars, respectively 18 inches and 

 1 3 inches in length ; the longer one has a circular section and is pointed at 

 both ends, a long tapering point at one end and a blunt point at the other. 

 Its general appearance is that of a modern crowbar. The shorter tool has 

 also a circular section for the greater portion of its length, f inch in diameter ; 

 one end is widened out to the extent of an inch and flattened, the other is 

 also expanded to an inch in width, and resembles a rudely-formed spoon. It 

 may have been used as a gouge for shaping timber. 



The eight axes are of special interest. They vary in form ; some of them 

 being of the Saxon 8 type, others resemble the francisca. The blade of the 

 largest axe is of the former kind, and is i o inches in length from the out- 

 side of the socket to the cutting edge of the blade. This is expanded and 

 measures 12 inches from one point to the other, with an average width of 

 an inch. The neck connecting the socket with the blade is f inch wide, and 

 has an average thickness of f inch. The socket measures if inches width 

 and depth, and is perforated to accommodate a shaft, of the usual oval form, 

 2 inches by i inch. Two smaller axes of the same form measure respectively 

 5! and 6 inches in total length. Another, of the francisca type, is 8 inches 

 in length, and 2j inches wide on the cutting edge. Two others are of a 

 similar form. 



The last object to be described exactly resembles a miner's pick of the 

 present day, and was, no doubt, used for similar purposes. It is loj inches 

 long, pointed at both ends, and perforated in the centre to accommodate a shaft 

 2 inches by i inch. Viewed from the side, it is fashioned to a curve of about 

 i foot in radius ; while at the centre, the socket is expanded to a depth of 

 ij inches. 



Of the two axes in Canon Greenwell's possession, one is of the Saxon 

 type, and is 9! inches long from the extremity of the socket to the edge of 



1 Social England, i. 259. Notes to Illus. p. xxi. 



8 Richard F. Burton, The Book of the SworJ, p. 94, fig. 98 ; Kemble, Horte Feraks, pi. 26 and 27, 

 pp. 207-208. Akerman's Pagan SaxonJom, pi. xxiii. ; Inventarium Sepulchrale passim, Lindenschmit Altertkummer, 

 vol. ii. heft iii. tof. 2 ; Lindenschmit, Handbuch, pt. i. 192-3 ; Demmin, Arms and Armour, 155. 



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