Ca. 200-300 AD A beautifully formed iron-short sword with a ring pommel, a tapering handle, a double-edged blade, and a pointed top. A slender rectangular guard creates a buffer between the blade's shoulder and the soldier's hand. Originally introduced by the Sarmatians and the Germans to the Roman legions and used by the Roman infantry in the 2nd century CE. Cf: "Arms and Armour of the Imperial Roman Soldier: From Marius to Commodus, 112 BC - AD 192" by Graham Summer, Raffaele D'Amato, 2009, pg. 88, fig. 81. For similar see The British Museum. Accession no. 2004,0301.1. Size: L:556mm / W:73mm ; 575g Provenance: Private UK collection; Formerly acquired on the European art market from pre-2000 collections.