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John Barnett Highlander Dirk

The highland clansmen of the 17th and 18th centuries were noted for the dirks they wore as part of their daily dress. In battle the dirk was held in the left hand along with a small circular shield known as a targe and a basket-hilted broadsword was used in the right hand. With this combination of weaponry not only could the clansman ward off enemy blades but he could also despatch either one or two opponents simultaneously. Early Scottish dirks developed from the medieval ballock dagger and often had plain wooden grips carved with Celtic interlace. The blades were single edged- long and extremely pointed. Later highland dirks had metal re-enforced grips and the blades were often ground down from broken swords. The dirk is still in use today both as part of military highland dress and as a general highland dress accessory.