Nicoletto Giganti is one of the most celebrated Italian fencing masters of the 17th century. His widely-acclaimed treatise of 1606 promised a second work, which however was long considered lost or never to have been written. Nonetheless in 1847 Alberto Marchionni did describe a purported second book by Giganti, outlining its contents in reasonable detail. In 2012 Joshua Pendragon (as Guest Exhibition Curator for the Noble Art of the Sword exhibition at the Wallace Collection in London) and Piermarco Terminiello, determined that the 1608 edition of Giganti held in the Lord Howard De Walden Library, is none other than the volume promised by Giganti in 1606, and described by Marchionni. This is the only known extant copy, of a work whose very existence had long been considered no more than a rumour. A book sought after and anticipated for centuries. With a forward by Tobias Capwell

The 'Lost' Second Book of Nicoletto Giganti(1608): A Rapier Fencing Treatise

History

Giganti, Nicoletto

World

Vulpes

"In this book I have striven to summarize, as succinctly as I could and as clearly as I have been able, the rules and methods that seemed necessary to me for the practice of the sword, both alone and with companion weapons. Having to describe the many minutiae and particular details of any art is almost impossible in the clarity that maybe it deserves. Nevertheless I hope to have made myself sufficiently understood in this treatise, so any man with some basic knowledge can be capable of what I have described." Marco Docciolini (1601)

Treatise on the Subject of Fencing: Marco Docciolini?s 1601 Fencing Treatise

Sports & Outdoors

Docciolini, Marco

Individual Sports

This is the first published English translation of Francesco Alfieri’s fencing treatise: “La Scherma”, first published in Padua in 1640. Alfieri was the Master at Arms at the Accademia Delia in Padua, Italy from 1632. The Delia was a school attached to the University of Padua teaching young gentlemen military skills, mathematics and the martial arts of self defence. It is not widely appreciated that Europe has martial arts traditions that are centuries old. Contained within this book is a description of one of these European combat systems ~ the art of fighting with the Rapier ~ a long, slender, civilian sword designed for self defence and dueling. The ability to wield such a weapon with skill was a matter of vital importance in an age when the defence of honour and, by definition, the immortal soul, could be more important than life itself. Alfieri’s concise system is a very practical and effective way to address this need. It is an excellent resource for all students of historical swordplay and anyone interested in the martial arts of Renaissance Europe. “This work doesn't 'merely' provide new access to a significant treatise published at a time of great transition in Europe, but it offers an opportunity to truly engage with Alfieri through the context supplied in its concise yet informative introduction and copious notes.” – Joshua Pendragon: Guest Curator, Noble Art of the Sword Exhibition, Wallace Collection, 2012

La Scherma: The Art of Fencing, Francesco Ferdinando Alfieri

Terminiello, Piermarco

Marshall, Phil

Stewart, Caroline

Miscellaneous

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