The Realm of the Dark Blade

I have always been a fan of weapons that mimic nature. But I frequently find that that most weapons designers fall into the trap of mimicry close enough to be recognizable but not close enough to look normal, and this makes the weapon look completely wrong. There are some cases however, where each detail is treated with such attention that the final result is quite convincing. Here’s an example:

Drake Fantasy Dragon Bowie

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Now here is a weapon with an interesting and visually striking twist. The black blade has a very deep belly and fairly sweeping curves, with a nice, well defined transition between the two curve sections of the blade. The spine of the blade also has a similarly sharp angle, as well as some rather aggressive cutouts that accentuate the point at the intersection of the blade sections.

The ricasso of this blade has a large (and, imho, unnecessary) void that flows into a polished guard sporting a set of rearward pointing fangs, like an enlarged section of a boa constrictors jaw. Presumably these might be intended to be a dragons jaw. But these are not the most striking thing about this blade. The grip is where it all comes together.

The grip is sharply curved, and covered with a multitude of well placed small red scales. the effect is beautiful. It looks strikingly natural, like an actual snake was used to make the grip. The butt cap finishes off the look with a polished, scorpion like stinger at the tail end of the handle. It all comes together to make a very intriguing weapon.

Normally I find these kinds of weapons a little too elaborate for my tastes, but every now and then I run into a few that have just the right aesthetics. And, of course, the black blade is very easy on my eyes…

Drake Fantasy Dragon Bowie – [Collectors Edge]

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