Reclaiming the Blade 2009 The Medieval and Renaissance blade, a profound and beautiful object handcrafted by master artisans of old An object of great complexity, yet one with a singular use in mind it is designed to kill The truth of the sword has been shrouded in antiquity, and the Renaissance martial arts that brought it to being are long forgotten The ancient practitioners lent us all they knew through their manuscripts As gunslingers of the Renaissance they were western heroes with swords, and they lived and died by them Yet today their history remains cloaked under a shadow of legend