Samson Fantasy Viking

Jody Samson

Fantasy Viking

Performance Review:
Honestly I did not particularly care for the way this sword felt in hand. The blade of this sword is fairly heavy due to the quite thick barstock that Mr. Samson typically works from. To compensate and make this blade handle better a massive pommel and cross were added.  Sometimes this works and indeed in this case I have no doubt that it did make the sword more lively. However, it is very obvious what was
done and despite the “fix” the sword still doesn’t handle like it’s real life counterparts. Of course as I’ve noted before I think that in a lot of ways Mr. Samson sees swords merely as a vehicle to convey his art and so often performance takes a back seat to aesthetics. That is the case here.

Appearance:
This sword, like many of Mr. Samson’s pieces is absolutely gorgeous. Mr. Samson always excels at providing us with a fantasy aesthetic that almost but not quite seems like it belongs to this culture or that one. It’s this very ambiguity that make his pieces so magnetic. As usual the fit and finish on this piece are absolutely outstanding. The assembly is nice and tight, the blade is painfully precise, and the wrap is
extremely well done. As usual Mr. Samson has turned out a stunning piece of work.

Conclusion:
This is not the sort of sword I would want to take into battle, although it would serve in a pinch there are far better swords for that sort of thing out there. As a prestige piece, something to show off your wealth and power? Oh yes, this sword definitely fits the bill.