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Source Description
The scramasax, a single-edged knife, was a general purpose implement. It could serve equally well as a tool or as a weapon and usually did not exceed 12 inches in length. As with most objects of the Migration period, iron weapons survive as excavated grave goods and tend to be heavily corroded. The grips, now missing, were probably fashioned from wood or bone and silver inlay decorated the pommels (the knob on the hilt, or handle). The ornamental gold foil bands, perhaps from the original scabbards (the cases in which the blades of swords or daggers are kept) have survived relatively intact.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
108744
label
Single-Edged Knife (Scramasax)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
108744
contentType
object
title
Single-Edged Knife (Scramasax)
description
The scramasax, a single-edged knife, was a general purpose implement. It could serve equally well as a tool or as a weapon and usually did not exceed 12 inches in length. As with most objects of the Migration period, iron weapons survive as excavated grave goods and tend to be heavily corroded. The grips, now missing, were probably fashioned from wood or bone and silver inlay decorated the pommels (the knob on the hilt, or handle). The ornamental gold foil bands, perhaps from the original scabbards (the cases in which the blades of swords or daggers are kept) have survived relatively intact.
date
c. 500–700
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q80000284
genreSpecific
Arms and Armor
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 54.3 x 6.4 cm (21 3/8 x 2 1/2 in.)
cul
Merovingian, Migration period, 6th-7th Century
accession
1926.429
Source extras
tec
iron, brass, gold foil, gold wire, gemstones
tombstone
Single-Edged Knife (Scramasax), c. 500–700. Merovingian, Migration period, 6th-7th Century. Iron, brass, gold foil, gold wire, gemstones; overall: 54.3 x 6.4 cm (21 3/8 x 2 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1926.429
collection
MED - Migration Period
citations
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 88
citation
Gertsman, Elina and Barbara H. Rosenwein. <em>The Middle Ages in 50 Objects</em>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 164-167; Reproduced: p. 165
creditline
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 05:48:54.901000
sourceId
108744
dept
Medieval Art
coll
MED - Migration Period
med
iron, brass, gold foil, gold wire, gemstones
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
36e0268d7bb4af87