Full metal combat

A R M O U R . W E A P O N S .

C O O L M E D I E V A L S T U F F .

DAYNA BERGHAN-WHYMAN

'Nothing is gained by saying 'no' to opportunities.' 

Dayna with her new Buhurt Axe. Dayna has a few axes.

She buys axes like some people buy shoes.

Battle AxeA battle axe (also battle-axe or battle-ax) is an axe specifically designed for combat.

Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes. Many were suitable for use in one

hand, while others were larger and were deployed two-handed.

Battle axes were very common in Europe in the Migration Period and the subsequent

Viking Age, and they famously figure on the 11th-century Bayeaux Tapestry, which

depicts Norman mounted knights pitted against Anglo-Saxon infantrymen. They

continued to be employed throughout the rest of the Middle Ages, with significant

combatants being noted axe wielders in the 12th, 13th and 14th centuries.

Buhurt Axe

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Spear (left)

A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.

The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire-

hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft,

such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or bronze. The most common design for hunting or

combat spears since ancient times has incorporated a metal spearhead-shaped like a

triangle, lozenge, or leaf. The heads of fishing spears usually feature barbs or serrated

edges.

The word spear comes from the Old English spere, from the Proto-Germanic speri, from

a Proto-Indo-European root *sper- "spear, pole". Spears can be divided into two broad

categories: those designed for thrusting in melee combat and those designed for

throwing (usually referred to as javelins).

Dayna's spear is a melee combat spear.

Dayna's spear was a gift from her opponent from the USA that she fought in Denmark in

2017. Dayna lost the fight, but got a spear and a new friend in return.

Bardiche (right)

A bardiche ("long pollaxe") is a type of axe/pole weapon known in the 14th through 17th

centuries in Europe. Ultimately a descendant of the medieval sparth (Danish axe), the

bardiche proper appears around 1400, but there are numerous medieval manuscripts

that depict very similar weapons beginning c. 1250.

Dayna fought in Denmark in 2017 with her Bardiche.

Spear (left) and Bardiche (right)

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Mako SharksThe NZ Team Surcoat has 5 Mako Sharks in the shape of koru. The koru (Māori for

"loop") is a spiral shape based on the shape of a new unfurling silver fern frond.

Elbow CopsElbow cop - is the portion of armour which covers the elbow joints, usually integral to

a complete arm harness. As part of a complete armour that covers the whole arm, it

is known as a cannon. The term knee cop is also used to refer to the article of

armour that covers just the knee, the correct historical term for this is poleyn.

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Gambeson (left) and Chausses (right) Gambeson (left)

A gambeson (or aketon or padded jack or arming doublet) is a padded defensive

jacket, worn as armour separately, or combined with mail or plate armour. It also

doubled as a winter coat for wearers. Gambesons were produced with a sewing

technique called quilting. Usually constructed of linen or wool, the stuffing varied, and

could be for example scrap cloth or horse hair. During the 14th century, illustrations

usually show buttons or laces up the front.

Chausses (right)

Chausses (French) are under armour for the legs. Chausses offered flexible protection

that was effective against slashing weapons. However, the wearer still felt the full

force of crushing blows.

The old French word chausse, meaning stocking, survives only in modern French as

the stem of the words chaussure (shoe) and chaussette (sock) and in the tongue-

twister:

Les chausses sèches de l'archiduchesse

Sont elles sèches ou archisèches?

...which today is often misunderstood as "les chaussettes de l'archiduchesse".

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Arming DoubletAn arming doublet (also called aketon) worn under armour, particularly plate armour of

fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe, contains arming points for attaching plates.

GauntletsA gauntlet is a name for several different styles of glove, particularly those with an

extended cuff covering part of the forearm.

Historically, gauntlets were used by soldiers and knights. It was considered an

important piece of armour, since the hands and arms were particularly vulnerable in

hand-to-hand combat.

Dayna's medieval gauntlets have a built-in knuckle duster. When the hand is bunched

into a fist, the backhand protection becomes pronounced from the fist just above the

knuckles. This allows Dayna to utilize the gauntlet as a melee weapon while still

protecting her hand from damage when punching.6

B O O K L E T W O R D I N G : C O U R T E S Y O F D A Y N A B E R G H A N - W H Y M A N

B O O K L E T : B R O U G H T T O Y O U B Y L I T T L E H U T T . P R O U D L Y T E L L I N G H U T T P E O P L E S '

S T O R I E S A N D G L O R I E S S I N C E S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7

L I T T L E H U T T . C O . N Z

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