Product description
The guisarme (also spelled gisarme, giserne, or bisarme) is a polearm that was primarily used in Europe between 1000 and 1400. The name likely derives from Old High German getīsarn (“widemetal” or “curved iron”). Its early form is difficult to determine, and identifying surviving examples remains uncertain.
According to the first theory, the guisarme evolved from agricultural tools by mounting a pruning hook on a spear shaft. It became so important that, after the spear, it was the most commonly used weapon of ordinary soldiers and was considered highly effective by the 13th century. Early models consisted of just a hook on a staff, while later versions added an additional spike. As a result, “guisarme” became a generic term for hook weapons, including bill-guisarmes, voulge-guisarmes, and glaive-guisarmes.
The second theory, proposed by Ewart Oakeshott and John Waldmann, interprets the guisarme as a crescent-shaped double axe, based on the usage of the term in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The guisarme, sometimes called a storm scythe, remained in use from the 11th century into the early 19th century.
