Re: Samurai battle axe

Does anyone 'know' battle axes? This is an interesting string - but
my image of a battle axe seems to parallel IGANOKAMI's. I have the
image of a really unbalanced weapon, if you hit, you win, if you
miss, you are dead... or am I wrong about axes made for battle - are
they light enough to recover quickly from a missed swing? Maybe a
thin blade that you grasp near the blade rather than low on the
handle like a baseball bat...? I know swords and staffs, not cudgels
and axes...

Hi

he only battle axe I know of is the Ono and masakari.

The Ono is supposed to be quite big. Ihave apic
somewhere which I can find and post.

I have been told that one branch of the Shindenfudo
Ryu once used the Ono but I have been unable to
comfirm it.

I think I saw one in use in the Ghost story movie -
Kwaidan in the story called Hoichi the earless


Paul

Well, I think that the weapon was more effective than you may think. The
"Vikings" from Scandinavia often used a large battle axe in their left
hand so as to catch their opponents on their unshielded side. At the
same time they could carry a smaller lighter weapon with which to defend
themselves whilst they were getting ready for another blow with their
axe. Does anyone know if the samurai ever carried two weapons at once
like this, especially an axe and a tanto? I think an axe and a katana or
nodachi would be too much to handle.

Sheldon