Description

Production Updates – Southern Italian Foil

Our Southern Italian Foil is currently under development. Add your name to the wish list to be notified when it’s available.

Southern Italian Fencing

Fencing schools in the 19th century never comprised the entirely of a country or culture. There were two distinct systems of fencing in Italy: Northern and Southern. While both originated from rapier fencing, the two systems varied slightly in the construction of the foil, and more in the application. The Southern schools were more aggressive in character than their Northern counterparts, and borrowed very little technique from other schools. It may be suggested Southern Italian fencing is more Italian in tradition than any other. We designed our Southern Italian Foil to the exact specifications of a great fencing master of the Southern school: Masaniello Parise.

Designed by Maestro Masaniello Parise in 1884

Maestro Masaniello Parise was appointed director of the Scuola Magistrale di Scherma of Rome in 1884. In his text, Trattato Teorico-Practico della Scherma di Spada e Sciabola, Masaniello Parise detailed the construction of his foil which we faithfully reproduced:

	Parise, 1884	Benjamin Arms’ Southern Italian Foil
Blade: 35”	√	√
Guard: 11cm	√	√
Ricasso: 6 cm	√	√
Crossbar: 13cm	√	√
Pad: Cushioned	√	√
Fish skin grip: 11cm	√	√

True Ricasso or False Ricasso?

The ricasso is the portion of blade between the guard and crossbar which the Italian fencer grips directly. We build our Southern Italian Foil with a true ricasso or false ricasso. A false ricasso mounts tightly on a French-tang blade to imitate a ricasso. Italian fencing masters assert the ricasso allows Italian fencers to feel the actions on the sword better than their contemporaries the French, Spanish, etc. It’s therefore figured a false ricasso stifles this benefit. While we absolutely recommend the true ricasso configuration for it’s historical accuracy, we don’t believe false ricassos diminish a fencer’s sensitivity to the sword. History demonstrates through it’s many masters that a ricasso is not required to be a successful, effective, or competitive fencer. We utilize false ricassos to offer a longer blade length and versatility to mount a variety of blades.

*Note: Above photos are of the true ricasso type unless noted in top left corner*

	Ricasso Length	Blade Length	Benefits	Drawbacks
True Ricasso	6 cm	~34.5”	True ricasso more historically accurate	Slightly shorter blade; more fitting required for replacement blade
False Ricasso	6 cm	35”	Longer blade more historically accurate; blade replaceable with French-tang blade; false ricasso can be removed to use true ricasso blade.	Thicker than true ricasso; slight added weight

Traditional Construction

Benjamin Arms builds all weapons to exacting specifications determined by the desired handling characteristics, school of fencing, and aesthetic tastes. We hand-carve shock-absorbing wood for the grip’s core to diminish vibrations from the blade into the hand. Each hand-fit component make a strong and durable foil for consistent and reliable use.

Italian Foil Sizing

Italian foils were not sized to the fencer as much as French weaponry. The Southern Italian Foil does not come in any other sizes than those specified by Masaniello Parise in 1884.

Specifications

• Leather & cord button on blade.
• Spun steel guard (11 inch diameter including flange) with black interior enamel coating
• 3D printed, solid steel crossbar
• Machine screws attach guard & crossbar for easy removal & tightening
• Ivory-colored lambskin finger pad
• 3D printed, solid steel false ricasso (optional)
• Hand carved wood-core grip wrapped in black fish skin (shagreen)
• Conical pommel slots into grip ferrule (end-cap) with 6x1mm threading
• Ambidextrous
• AHF tournament compliant