What kind of sword does Conan use?

golok

golok

Joined
Oct 20, 2000
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I notice that Conan uses a big, fat, ugly sword that is chipped in several places.

Somebody has probably copied the sword which came from some bygone age. Now, I would like to know from which period in history does Conan's sword come from.

Or, does such a sword exists? Or is it a copy from some exotic country? Please don't say, Aquilonia.
 
I have wondered about the swords used in that film too. I know they were made by Jody Samson, but are they based on actual historical swords? Are there any quality replicas to be had, I have seen cheap ones. The ancient sword Conan has and his father's sword have all I have ever seen any info about, but I have wondered about the swords used by Conan's girlfriend and his archer/thief partner. They appear to by versions of a Chinese Willow Leaf sword. At the begining, Conan's mother's sword is also quite nice. The weapons used in the gladiator pit scenes and the Conan in training scenes are cool too. In one scene he appears to have an extra long katana. One of my favorite movies, it did a lot to interest me in edged weapons.

Hey Golok, did you get that package I sent to you yet? Maybe you should check with the post office there if not, and I will see what I can find out on this side.
 
I believe that Mr. Samson made up those fantasy designs pretty much out of his head. The swords used by some of the characters definitely look daoish but Conan's sword, father's sword etc. etc. are pretty much pure fantasy as far as I can tell. I have never seen anything even remotely resembling them that is historical. If you want to buy one (and have a lot of spare change) you can check here:
www.albionarmorers.com
 
Triton, you Eveel, bad, nasty, person, you should ALWAYS warn people before sending them to that site.

The sticker shock can be LETHAL.
lol.gif


Of the two, I personally much prefer the Father's Sword over the Atlantean, but they are both strictly fantasy pieces in the end.
 
Tee hee. Yeah I would dearly love to know if they have actually sold one. They do have that "not exactly accurate" version for only around 1000 dollars if you don't want the expensive one.
 
I have never found a historical sword that resembles the Conan Sword in any way. It looks, and is used, more like an overgrown dagger than a sword. In the story the "sword" is found on a giant that looks to be about 10-12 feet tall. It would make sense that this is actually more of a parrying dagger - a very large one!

n2s

Actually, if you imagine this at about 50% of it's actual size, think of the "guard" as a subhit, with three fingers before the guard, the index finger after the guard and the thumb resting on the brass strip; It has the makings of an interesting dagger. Perhaps we can convince Jody to issue a Human size Conan Sword (dagger).
 
All ye mortals quiver before the might of Szabo!!!!

VERY cool N2S, I never noticed the similarity before!
:D
 
The so-called "Atlantean broadsword" used in the Conan films is, as was noted by others, a pure fantasy piece, though its design does incorporate some historical features--such as the ricasso (long blunt section at the base of the blade) which can be used to choke up one's grip for various actions (German zweihanders--such as Cold Steel's "Two-Handed Greatsword--feature this).
 
Jeez now there's a thread that was a blast from the past... You do realize that question was originally asked (and answered) 4 years ago?
 
No one's said anything about how heavy these damn things are...too much for real use anyway (seven and a half pounds?? you could kill two enemys and have to rest! :D )
 
Milius says he had wanted to make a Viking movie.

In the original stories Conan pretty much used anything at hand to slay the less fortunate and obtain scantily clad females.

REH liked to explore different cultures and different types of weaponry.
 
Dave K said:
Milius says he had wanted to make a Viking movie.

In the original stories Conan pretty much used anything at hand to slay the less fortunate and obtain scantily clad females.

REH liked to explore different cultures and different types of weaponry.
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I read Conan comics as a kid,seems sword was second...to an ax :cool:
 
The 30 dollar knockoffs in Bud K are referred to as claymores. Then again, Anduril from Return of the King is referred to as a claymore also.
 
I remember being a kid watching Conan the Barbarian in the theater and thinking that I would give ANYTHING to have a sword like Conan's. Well, when I found out that Albion was making replicas of the sword under the watchful eye of Jody Samson, I ordered one on the spot! It is a thing of beauty!! At 7 1/2 pounds this is a very heavy sword, but to see just how massive it is, you would expect it to weigh more. And it is surprisingly well balanced (albion did a great job on this) so it doesn't seem like such a hunk of steel in your hand. The sword is built like a tank, and as a proud owner of several custom made swords, I think it's funny that the first sword of mine that anyone goes for is the Conan sword. Sure, it was expensive, but how can you put a price on something you have wanted for over 20 years? Reading back over this, you might think I do PR work for Albion--I don't, I'm just happy with my sword!
 
I for one am thankful for this thread being dredged back up!

Conan the Barbarian is still an all-time favorite movie of mine. And when I read them REH's work were in little paperback books I used to get from various used book stores. Mr. Howard Rocked! And I always wanted one of those swords.

...Neat to look at but way to pricey - and much too heavy. Nevertheless, WAY COOL :thumbup:

Another of my favorite stories as a kid were the Edgar Rice Burroughs Princess of Mars series - interesting that Mr. Jody has created the martian longsword too!!!
 
Bobwhite said:
I have wondered about the swords used in that film too. I know they were made by Jody Samson, but are they based on actual historical swords? Are there any quality replicas to be had, I have seen cheap ones. The ancient sword Conan has and his father's sword have all I have ever seen any info about, but I have wondered about the swords used by Conan's girlfriend and his archer/thief partner. They appear to by versions of a Chinese Willow Leaf sword. At the begining, Conan's mother's sword is also quite nice. The weapons used in the gladiator pit scenes and the Conan in training scenes are cool too. In one scene he appears to have an extra long katana. One of my favorite movies, it did a lot to interest me in edged weapons.

Hey Golok, did you get that package I sent to you yet? Maybe you should check with the post office there if not, and I will see what I can find out on this side.
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that's easy - early 1980's.that's when jody sampson made them:D
 
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