Before the Mast

art-of-swords:

Historical Swords - The Sword of Francis I-st

The sword of Francis I-st is a sword of the court of France forged between 1510-1515 and belonged to King Francis. The sword is a ceremonial sword and, as you can see, it is richly decorated. Because of the absence of royal crown above the salamander the sword suggests that it was forged and offered to the king before his coronation.

On quillons of the weapon is engraved a Latin verse from the Magnificat: “Fecit potentiam in brachio suo” that can be translated in many ways (depending on the English Liturgy): “He placed the power in his arms” or “He hath shewed might in his arm” or “He puts forth his arm in strength”.