I collect swords because I find them beautiful and I enjoy slicing potatoes out of the air with them. Yup, I really do that. And, anyone who visits gets to do it too. It's kind of a thing we do at my house. I've also collected a few other items, like a battle axe, a mace, and a flail. One thing's become crystal clear regarding these weapons: these things are ruthlessly effective instruments of war. These things don't play around.
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You've probably seen movies where the hero gets smacked in the face with a mace. What's not shown is how the hero wouldn't have a face left afterwards. For a long time I wouldn't display the flail (which is a spiked ball on a chain, attached to a long handle) because it's the single most brutal weapon I've ever seen. The thing is, when these weapons were created they weren't for play or beauty; this was warfare and not games. But, with the comfort of many intervening years, these items become less utilitarian and more curiosities.
I wonder if today's weapons will have the same fate? Will people many years from now look at our guns and tanks and think, "huh, I could put those on my wall." Maybe. There is something to learn though, and that's how incredible our concept of beauty is. Just think about. Technology is a sort of art. It follows that war technology would eventually fall into the same category. Catapults, once used to destroy castles, are now being used to throw pumpkins! (Punkin Chunkin') I think it's a testimony to the resilience of we human beings how we can turn what once took lives into something new that creates joy and pleasure. As a side note, there are two pumpkins on our porch that desperately require a few good slices to fit into the trash cans... hee hee.
- M
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