Jade Lion Dagger

Jade Lion Dagger

The concept of the guardian lion emerged in China over 1800 years ago during the Han Dynasty. The lion, fierce, courageous, loyal and swift, was the perfect symbol to guard home and hearth. Both decorative and symbolic, it was common to see elegant sculptures of these lions guarding the homes of the wealthy and aristocratic or even the gates of the Imperial Palace and the tombs of the Chinese emperors.

The Cold Steel® Jade Lion series has proven to be incredibly popular with Chinese Martial Artists and blade collectors alike. Hand-forged and expertly tempered from high-quality Damascus steel, their subtly patterned blades are as sharp as they are beautiful. The heavy guard and pommel are cast from nickel-silver and adorned with watchful Chinese lions, providing a compelling contrast to the elegant jade green color of the cord-wrapped handles and wooden scabbards that are covered in Samé (ray skin), dyed to match the handles.

Damascus Steel

The terms Damascus steel, damascene or pattern welded designate a compound steel forged out of two or more different types of steel. It is named after its birthplace, the Syrian city of Damascus, a former stronghold of the patterned steel production. As a common practice, a harder high carbon steel and a milder low carbon steel are repeatedly forge welded and folded together. The high carbon steel ensures a higher hardness, a better temperability and longer lasting edge retention, whereas the milder steel confers greater blade flexibility and tensile strength. This procedure, which arose in a time where steel qualities were often low and inconsistent, enables to combine the positive attributes of the various steel grades. Besides, the different shadings generated by the varying carbon content of the alternating layers engender strikingly beautiful patterns. Undoubtedly, these unusual patterns partly explain why inherent magical properties were attributed to the Damascus steel blades of the Middle Ages.

Specifications:

• Material: Damascus steel
• Overall length: approx. 54.3cm
• Blade length: approx. 39.4cm
• Blade thickness: approx. 6.4mm
• Handle: approx. 14.9cm long, jade green cord wrap, nickel-silver guard & pommel
• Weight: approx. 612 g
• Incl. polished Samé-wrapped wooden scabbard w/ nickel-silver fittings