RECOMMENDED READS
Techniques of Medieval Armour Reproduction
by Brian R. Price
and
Fighting with the German Longsword
by Arador's Historical Medieval and Renaissance Combat Forum Moderator Christian H. Tobler.
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Armouring/ |
Knights and Armour |
Historical Combat Arts |
Warfare and Tournaments |
Period |
This section is concerned with books that are instructional for the creation of armour, weaponry, and other metalwork. Please note that blacksmithing and armouring are not the same thing. While books on blacksmithing are likely to be of help to a certain degree, they will not show you how to create armour. We recommend giving our Introduction to the Skill of Making Armour article a read for more details.
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Andrews, Jack, New Edge of the Anvil: A Resource Book for the Blacksmith; Skipjack Press, 1994. |
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Bealer, Alex W., The Art of Blacksmithing; Castle, 1995. (ISBN 0785803955) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Blandford, Percy W., Practical Blacksmithing and Metalworking; McGraw-Hill Professional, 1988. |
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Ffoulkes, Charles, Armourer & His Craft: From XIth to the XVIth Century; New York, Dover Publications, 1988. "Rating: Excellent. Ffoulke's historically rich text and many pictures are a huge benefit to anyone interested in armouring." Read more, or |
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Hrisoulas, Jim, Complete Bladesmith: Forging Your Way To Perfection Paladin Press, 1987. "Rating: Excellent. This book has made Jim Hrisoulas my idol, this book is excellent material for beginners and masters of the forged blade alike. M.S." |
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Hrisoulas, Jim, Master Bladesmith: Advanced Studies In Steel
Paladin Press, 1991. |
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Hrisoulas, Jim, Pattern-Welded Blade: Artistry In Iron Paladin Press, 1994. |
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McCreight, Tim, The Complete Metalsmith: An Illustrated Handbook; Davis, 1991. "Rating: Excellent. Its got info on how to do specific metal working tasks, some stuff on jewerly including fascinating gem information. Its more of a referance guide then a book to learn from. -A.D." |
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McCreight, Tim, Practical Casting; Brynmorgen Pr , 1994. |
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McDaniel, Randy, Blacksmithing Primer: A Course in Basic & Intermediate Blacksmithing; Dragonfly Enterprises, 2002. |
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Price, Brian, Techniques of Medieval Armour Reproduction; Paladin Press, 2000-2002. "Rating: Excellent. This comprehensive and easy to follow primer should be on the bookshelf of every person even remotely interested in medieval armour." Read more, or |
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Weygers, Andrew G., The Complete Modern Blacksmith; Ten Speed Pr., 1997. "Rating: Excellent. I would highly recomend this book to anyone interested in blacksmithing. It contains hundreds of pics that explain many of the processes that a blacksmith will use and it may also be useful to armor makers as far as making tools goes. -A.A." |
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Williams, Dr. Alan, The Knight and the Blast Furnace; Brill Academic Publishers, 2003. |
This section is concerned with books researching arms and armour in history rather than armour and metalworking instructionals.
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Ashdown, Charles H., European Arms and Armour; Barnes & Noble Books, 1995 (originally published 1909). (ISBN 1566196515) "Rating: Good. A great deal of information on the subject has come to light in the last 100 years that dates this book considerably." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
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Balent, Matthew, Weapons & Armour; Detroit, MI: Palladium Books, 1981. (No ISBN) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Blair, Claude, European Armour c. 1066 to c. 1700; London: B.T. Batsford, Ltd., 1958 (reprints in 1972 and 1978). (ISBN 0713407298 OUT OF PRINT) "Rating: Excellent. One of the must-have books on arms and armour." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
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Boccia, Lionello G., Le Armatura di S. Maria delle Grazie di Curatone di Mantova e L'Armature Lombarda del '400; Bramante Editrice, Milano, 1982 Buy from Alibris.com |
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Bottomley, J. & Hopson, A.P., Arms & Armor of the Samurai: The History of Weaponry in Ancient Japan; Crescent Books, 1993. "Rating: Excellent. If you want to make authentic Japanese armour, this book will be a great help." Read more, or |
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Boutell, Charles, Arms and Armour in Antiquity and the Middle Ages; Combined Books, 1996. |
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Bull, Stephen, An Historical Guide to Arms & Armour; New York: Facts on File, 1991. "Rating: Very Good. A useful book worthy of a place in any armour enthusiast's library." Read more, or |
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Cockerell, Sydney, Old Testament Miniatures (The Maciejowski Bible); George Braziller, 2001 "Rating: Excellent. The artistic reference book on 13th C. armour, weapons, and clothing." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
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Dixon, Philip, The Making of the Past: Barbarian Europe; Elsevier/Phaidon. (ISBN 0729000117 OUT OF PRINT) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Edge, David and John Miles Paddock, Arms & Armor of The Medieval Knight; New York: Crescent Books, 1988. (OUT OF PRINT) "Rating: Excellent. Covering from the early medieval period through the 17th C., I don't believe there is a better overview out there." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
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Fliegel, Stephen N., Arms and Armour: The Cleveland Museum of Art; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1998. |
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France, John, Western Warfare in the Age of the Crusades, 1000-1300; Cornell University Press, 1999 |
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Grancsay, Stephen V., Arms and Armor: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 1920-1964; The Metropolitan Museum of Art. (ISBN 0870993380 OUT OF PRINT) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Joanneum, Landesmusem, Shiny Shapes: Arms and Armor from the Zeughaus of Graz; New York, Springer-Verlag Wien, 1999. "Rating: Poor. It is a shame for such an important museum as Graz to have produced such an unaccurate book." Read more, or |
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Karcheski, Walter J., Arms and Armor in the Art Institute of Chicago, Vol. 1; Little Brown and Company, 1995. |
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Karcheski, Walter J., The Medieval Armour From Rhodes; Higgins Armory Museum, 2000-2002 Buy from Alibris.com |
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Keegan, John, The Face of Battle; Viking Press, 1995. |
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Laking, Guy F., A Record of European Armour & Arms Through Seven Centuries; Chiswick Press, 2001 (originally published in 1922). (OUT OF PRINT) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Nicolle, David C., Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Western Europe and the Crusader States; Greenhill Books/Lionel Leventhal, 1999. "Rating: Excellent. An indespensible resource for detailed information." Read more, or |
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Nicolle, David C., Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia; Greenhill Books/Lionel Leventhal, 1999. |
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Norman, Vesey, Arms and Armor; Octopus Books, 1964. "Rating: Very Good. A good starters guide to armour." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
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Norman, Vesey and Don Pottinger, English Weapons & Warfare 449-1660; Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966. (ISBN 01328228715 OUT OF PRINT) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Oakeshott, R. Ewart, Archaeology of Weapons: Arms & Armour from Prehistory to the
Age of Chivalry; London: Lutterrworth Press, 1960. |
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Oakeshott, R. Ewart, European Weapons and Armour; North Hollywood, CA: Beinfield Publishing, Inc., 1980. "Rating: Very good. Superb reference." Read more, or |
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Pfaffenbichler, Matthias, Medieval Craftsmen: Armourers; University of Toronto Press, 1992. "Rating: Good. Less a study of the historical aspects of armour than it is about the armourers themselves." Read more, or |
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Pyhrr, Stuart W., European Helmets, 1450-1650: Treasures from the Reserve Collection; Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000-2002. "Rating: Very Good. Well filled with interesting information and unique pictures." Read more, or |
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Rossi, Francesco, Medieval Arms and Armor; Magna Books. (ISBN 1854221728 OUT OF PRINT) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Stone, George Cameron, A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times Together With Some Closely Related Subjects
; Dover Pubns, 2000 (originally published in 1934). "Rating: Very Good. Great book, must have!" Read more, or |
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Thordeman, Bengt, Armour from the Battle of Wisby; Chivalry Bookshelf, 2001 (originally published in 1939). "Rating: Excellent. The comprehensive volume of armour of the 14th C." Read more, or buy from Chivalry Bookshelf |
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Trapp, Oswald Graf, The Armoury of the Castle Churburg; Magnus, Fagagna, 1995. Buy from Alibris.com |
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Tummers, H.A., Early Secular Effigies in England: The Thirteenth Century; EJ Brill, 1980. Buy from Alibris.com |
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Turnbull, Stephen, The Book of the Medieval Knight; New York, Crown Publishers, 1995. (ISBN 0517558637) Buy from Alibris.com |
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Wagner, Eduard, Medieval Costume, Armour, and Weapons; Dover, 2000-2002. |
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Waterer, John W., Leather and the Warrior : an account of the importance of leather to the fighting man from the time of the ancient Greeks to World War II; The Museum of Leathercraft, 1981 (ISBN 0950418218 OUT OF PRINT) "Rating: Very good. Probably the most thorough and sought-after book on the subject." Read more, or buy from Alibris.com |
