03-07-2007, 07:18 PM
Adventures in ancient martial arts
Despite the strange title, this a very good book on the sword martial arts in western tradition fro the greek time to the modern. With chapters intermixed with little historical episodes, each chapter is linked to an argument. Very enjoyable book (intesting the chapter "reinassance sword tecnique in 150 a.d.")
THe author is one of major expert of western history of martial art, and fight seven Mensuren with german cutting rapier.
A little sentence from the book:
"The concept of a combat system's a priori "lethality" appears to have limited value to determine how efficiently and how fast an opponent can be neutralized.
Neither thrust nor cut - while certainly dangerous and potentially life threatening to the fighters- can claim a monopoly on being the most effective means to neutralize the opponent. In fact , it appears as if the belief in the superiority of one particular tecnique contained the danger of overconfidence, which might prove more lethal to a fighter than enemy steel.
"
Despite the strange title, this a very good book on the sword martial arts in western tradition fro the greek time to the modern. With chapters intermixed with little historical episodes, each chapter is linked to an argument. Very enjoyable book (intesting the chapter "reinassance sword tecnique in 150 a.d.")
THe author is one of major expert of western history of martial art, and fight seven Mensuren with german cutting rapier.
A little sentence from the book:
"The concept of a combat system's a priori "lethality" appears to have limited value to determine how efficiently and how fast an opponent can be neutralized.
Neither thrust nor cut - while certainly dangerous and potentially life threatening to the fighters- can claim a monopoly on being the most effective means to neutralize the opponent. In fact , it appears as if the belief in the superiority of one particular tecnique contained the danger of overconfidence, which might prove more lethal to a fighter than enemy steel.
"
"Each historical fact needs to be considered, insofar as possible, no with hindsight and following abstract universal principles, but in the context of own proper age and environment" Aldo A. Settia
a.k.a Davide Dall\'Angelo
SISMA- Società Italiana per gli Studi Militari Antichi
a.k.a Davide Dall\'Angelo
SISMA- Società Italiana per gli Studi Militari Antichi