Dacian Sica was it a Weapon Historically?

Thrand test a Dacian Sica made by Iamandi Christian from Romania on an analog Gel head to see if it was a viable weapon on the early battle field during the age of the Roman Empire and the Dacian wars. Iamandi Christian is an expert Bladesmith, Dacian Historian and reenactor who lives in Romania and has a workshop 3 miles away from Targoviste one of Vlad the impaler's old castles. This test is truly Historical many historians have argured the true purpose of the Sice and if it was truly a weapon to be feared like its bigger brother the Falx decimator of the first to arrive Roman Legionnaire before the modified shields and armor to combat it properly.
The Dacian Sica : information link
www.enciclopedia-dacica.ro/?op...
You can contact Iamandi Christian on Facebook about his works
/ iamandiknife
Iamandi Christian on KZbin
/ pisoitgv
Special Thanks to Brad Lynn for graphics, intro and outro
/ bradlynndrawings
Chris Barker Music
/ cbshredz

[@metatronyt]

Keep up the good work friend! :D

[@Thrand11]

Thanks Metaron :D

[@eyecred4153]

@Metatron Mate, can we expect any videos from you about the Dacian Wars?I'm quite curious of the italian side of the story :)

[@mappingstation2818]

In illyrian =Sika=thika in Albanian Wich means knife

[@alinalexandru2466]

That's a sick sica you got there.

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!!

[@bretalvarez3097]

That eyebrow strike looked extremely nasty

[@Thrand11]

agreed

[@fenrirrising131]

Excellent demonstration , but I have a bit of an amateur hypothesis: Since most weapons of the era came from farm tools it is not hard to imagine this was something highly accessible a sort of "angry brother" of a sickle . Some you can be hewing grain with one moment and gutting torsos the next. I know for a fact that is where the sika that the hebrews carried came from so it's not hard to imagine the Dacian would have a similar lineage .

[@MadNumForce]

Grains harvesting tools tend to make very poor weapons. Because it's a very light duty job (but physically tiring), tools tend to be made light, to save on metal, and to make it less tiring to use; i.e., blades are thin and edge fragile. It's okay for a dagger, but as soon as you're trying to chop, you need something able to withstand the force. Something more akin to billhooks, and designed for harvesting fuel or wicker (for basketry), delimbing felled trees, hedging, coppicing, pollarding, etc... Not sure they were doing all these activities back in the Antiquity, but at least some of them, and a tool like a strong sica might come in handy, as is a billhook. Some of the sicae shown in pictures are obviously high status: those with a full tang and ferrules, and it's likely they were dedicated weapons. You don't need that kind of fanciness on a tool. On the other hand, some have a very simple construction, somewhat reminiscent of the way parangs are constructed (short, stubby triangular tang), simply cause it's very easy to make a handle for it, and it's not unlikely they could have found some other practical uses at wood related agricultural tasks.

[@fenrirrising131]

@@MadNumForce you are speaking in absolutes . I was not and of course such an item wouldn't be ornate in the hands of an everyman only a moron would look at such a weapon as that and think they were mass produced in such a way and as far as effectiveness is considered that just boils down to "jack of all trades master of none". I could go on but there is no point . Dont you have a skallagrim comment section to haunt ?

[@jothegreek]

@@MadNumForce yep thats what i pointed out

[@nikemozack7269]

Originally it could've come from a sickle, however, Sica was a status side weapon. It was found only in Elites graves, always with a straight Spatha. The common soldiers would've carried a one handed Falx and shield, with specialized units carrying the dreaded 2 handed Falxes. Jewish Sicarii were armed with Sicas, that's were the name comes from. Also the Thraex gladiator fought with one as well.

[@fenrirrising131]

@@jothegreek ibid

[@ylberlezha]

For those who don’t know this originated in Illyria Dacia and Thracia they were related tribes in a lot of things linguistically and culturally and we all fought the same way the sika as it is pronounced in our language was made to reach over a shield and still damage the guy behind the shield also used to pull the shield away similar to an axe there are a few Versions of the sika

[@haj0727]

I was watching Forged In Fire and i found this great video.👏

[@Thrand11]

Good to have you here :)

[@eyecred4153]

Yay another video on the stuff used by Dacians :D Thanks brother!

[@Thrand11]

You are most welcome love the Dacian falx.

[@rickjames7391]

That blade's gruesomely efficient. Looks comfortable to carry as well.

[@Thrand11]

Very much so felt good in the hand.

[@ovidiovillanueva5846]

That reverse grip strike seems very hard to defend against. And the damage it caused was crazy for such a light blade.. Maybe. A warrior would use this blade when dealing with predictable soldiers with standard blades and attacks to gain an advantage .another awesome video thrand

[@Thrand11]

Thanks

[@gabicraioveanu2590]

"Sica" was not a dagger, "sica" was one handed sword, used in war in combination with a Dacian shield. There was indeed a longer one used more as cavalry sword, Dacian cavalry was a nightmare for the Roman provinces of Moesia Inferior, Moesia Superior and Tracia from 60 AD to 300 AD. Carpian and Costoboc ( Free Dacian Tribes) winter raids( because the Danube used to freeze allowing them to cross south). Sica is a member of the Thracian flax weapon family, as Dacians were "The bravest and the most numerous of the Thracians" as Herodotus mention them. According to the archaeological findings, most of the Dacian swords find so far were comparable in length to a Roman Gladius, cavalry version were longer comparable to Roman spatha (Roman cavalry sword) , some even longer. Thracians used the flax most as two handed weapon to cut in to phalanx formations, so it is logic to presume that Dacians had "berserk" type soldiers too, two handed sword users. Some are seen on Trajan Column in Rome.

[@victorcast2467]

You know what I really like in your videos. It's not just destruction just for the sake of if. All the historical context and info, for me, is even cooler than the actual testing. Now let's get back to the video and watch the destruction part!

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!!

[@widgren87]

I was just about to shut down and go to bed and you upload this, I am OK with this :-) Best of Luck to you Thrand.

[@marcelOberauer]

8:45 That moment when you swing the knife and you heard the "Psycho" killer sound ;)

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!! thanks for that just noticed it! LOL

[@kvjqxzz5905]

attacks against the hands and forearms would be devastating too, another great vid

[@Thrand11]

Agreed

[@TheKuwi]

awesome video, never thought it will perform that well

[@Dominator046]

You two are excellent. Awesome work, Thrand!

[@Thrand11]

Thanks

[@45calibermedic]

Really cool video, Thrand. Iamandi Christian must be very proud of his tool being put through its paces. I agree that the weapon is very reminiscent of the Karambit. I would not be surprised if the sica were based on an agricultural tool. As a work knife, it has interesting properties for making small cuts and piercing material, as well as uses that a sickle would go through. Some basic carving would be doable, but not ideal, and I have no doubt that they had many small, straight knives for this purpose. What surprised me was the power that the weapon has for its size and weight. That sica looks like it wouldn't be too bad to carry, and balanced well enough for both striking and close-in grappling, with hooking and piercing/tearing applications like those of the karambit. It seems like the tip would in a way make sure that cuts on soft targets like muscles or joints would go all the way down, because of the hook shape of the blade projecting itself forward as you cut, vs a straight blade traveling basically straight along the surface. Thanks for your dedication to providing us with great info!

[@Thrand11]

agreed

[@Kanikanihia]

Great demonstration! Also loved how you have a pretty Dacian look overall (just replace the Mjolnir with a wolf necklace and the hat with a Dacian/Phrygian one) and quite a Romanian face. You would easily pass around here as local. lol

[@russmitchell3806]

Sickles do that, too. I routinely take out inch-thick branches with a nothing sickle, cutting with the edge, rather than going for the tip. The mechanical advantage is NUTS.

[@marinmarian342]

It was also used to show the social ranking. It was a pride to have one and they were with many decorations. It was kind of a stiletto. That's what an archeologist said to me in a very long conversation, being a volunteer to an archeological site.

[@ilirjantavmepatligjona8591]

Th(s)ika means knife in Albanian. Very similar

[@mundocabrera7007]

Heard you loud and clear.

[@Thrand11]

Awesome, we have even better sound equipment in now to play with and camera repaired plus the new one.

[@LostBeetle]

I didn't think it would do that much. Guess I was wrong.

[@brumalogresteer4124]

4 likes and no views? KZbin is messing with you...

[@SkullPunisher446]

that someone who killed himself with it was Decebal, one of the greater kings of the Dacian Kingdom and the one that fought Trajan in the Second Dacian War. He is portrayed on the Trajan's Column killing himself so he wouldn't get caught by romans and be humiliated at the Roman Forum.

[@batmayn]

Enjoying your videos, and getting educated. A mic more focused on your voice could help, but honestly hose birds in the background are soothing. Keep making great content. Haaaaa ok now I just heard your disclaimer about the camera. ... I should have watched this video fully before starting this comment. Great video. Lethal. *Bows politely and exits before making anything worse*

[@cromdevoter5942]

9:05 Is brutal

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!! agreed

[@dick_richards]

Wow sick!!

[@julianmarco4185]

The weapon was definitly used for close quarters combat. The Romans were extra armor on the head and arms to protect themselves from cuts from close quarters. History tells us that most dacians had a small flax like this on their person at all times.

[@conradswadling8495]

similar to some billhooks. still used in europe.

[@Thrand11]

Yes very true. The falx looks very similar to the billhook that made a comeback in the full maille eras.

[@pascaalexandru7575]

Hi. I want add something, my opinion based on Dacian warfare, because it's suggested that sica might have been an assasin's weapon. Apart the ceremonial usage of sica, dacians preferred guerrilla style warfare with small units doing a fast strike and retreat. Every other nation that did guerrilla style warfare preferred smaller blades over the larger ones simply because it would add speed to the attack. And falx was used as weapon in battle were large armies would face eachother. My opinion is that sica was used in the blitz attacks where enemies wouldn't be prepared with defensive formations or even fully armoured. As I said that's just my opinion.

[@Thrand11]

Great idea

[@koosh138]

I was thinking that these kind of knives would be useful in jab/stab motions. Similar to how a karambit or maybe a jambiya could have been used.

[@pigsticker5764]

A fine ancient blade! 🗡 🗡

[@Thrand11]

Thanks and Indeed Iamandi makes awesome reproductions.

[@pigsticker5764]

@@Thrand11 Awesome bro

[@richard6133]

I think that while it did reasonably against the skull, it's way more of a threat to soft tissues, especially in the thrust. I bet that it is at the very least the inspiration for the sicari, used by the Jewish Zealots to ambush Roman Legionnaires. I heard that they tended to target the armpits, using the curve of the blade to thrust around the edge of the armor. I don't know, it's just what I heard. I could be completely wrong.

[@Thrand11]

Very plausible

[@mappingstation2818]

The modern made one is different with the historical one ,the way they made it so it has different penetration,it was largely used also by illyrians in balkans

[@dymytryruban4324]

Nice video but one thing is unclear to me. Bone in human skull is of varying thickness. Temple apparently has the thinnest bone. Is this taken into consideration when head model is built? The reason why I asked this question is the second and third blows being dealt into temple area.

[@Thrand11]

No heads are tough evenly not softer like human skull in thinner boned areas.

[@NorfolkTears]

And this is why even poor conscripts acquired a helmet first. Something I would do if I was ThegnThrands neighbour. :P

[@Thrand11]

Agreed

[@jinxhead4182]

Nice vid, mate, but could you try a throat cutting motion from behind, e.g. assassination style? I think your theory towards that has some merit, and the curved blade could do insane amounts of damage to a neck with a continuous, strong application of force.

[@Thrand11]

Agreed but was testing the Sica in combat context in this video I can comeback with other uses such as assassination or dispatching sentries.

[@jinxhead4182]

@@Thrand11 Please do! The curved blade probably bites into soft material like crazy!

[@cheneyxxxxx]

very interesting!

[@colmhain]

That first strike, what a CRACK! I suspect deep enough to be fatal, certainly incapacitating. Dead either way, in ancient days.

[@Thrand11]

Agreed

[@krellio9006]

kind of wondering how people back then can survive being struck in the head

[@philipm3173]

She's on the money, it certainly was used as a self-defence weapon, and ceremonial as well, but in the Great Jewish Revolt of 66 CE, the first documented 'cloak-and-dagger'- assasinations of were recorded with rebels attacking Roman soldiers in crowds quickly disappearing. Another interesting tidbit, at the Battle of Beth Horon the Jews ambushed a legion 6k strong and is one of the only known times a Roman legion lost its aquila. You mentioned the similarity in shape to the Kukri which is a slashing weapon, the concave shape to me rules out stabbing attacks.

[@mundocabrera7007]

Could it have been a farming tool turned weapon?

[@Thrand11]

We have never found the Sica or Falx in an agricultural or peasant grave that I know of all seem to be nobility and warriors. It very well could have been origins of the beginning of weapon design but I feel it may have been a solution to getting around shields and capitalizing of extreme force generated in tip cuts from sword points.

[@esocida]

@@Thrand11 check romanian SECERA agricultural tool. CLOSE TO DACIAN SICA

[@weapontester5305]

G'day Thrand - excellent as usual. Love the different bird sounds in the background. Do you make the heads or source them from somewhere?

[@colmhain]

Weapon Tester He makes them. Often funded by viewers.

[@Thrand11]

@@colmhain Ja, Very true

[@Thrand11]

Ja, I make them and funds from supporters of the channel make it possible to do the test and create the test mediums such as the heads.

[@weapontester5305]

@@Thrand11 Have you done a video on making them? If not, that's something I'd love to see as well.

[@Thrand11]

@@weapontester5305 I have planned on it but never got around to it as of yet.

[@piscesmortui4892]

Sorry to ask an offtopic question but can you recomment any online shopping sites where I can buy tunics (like the one you always wear under your chainmail) with good quality? and do those tunics have somkind of special name so I can better research myself?

[@Thrand11]

Medieval Shoppe Australia has good tunics and period garb at an affordable price.

[@GuitarsRockForever]

It is not hard to imagine it was both a tool and weapon.

[@Thrand11]

Agreed a tool or weapon for every purpose :D

[@chrisbasarab2446]

Great vid, mate! During those times, this would have been the perfect daily carry. Off hand, main hand or just as a carving knife or an utensil. We're too used with the straight dagger designs to easily understand these style of weapons, when they were surprisingly effective once upon a time. I mean, the sica, the falx, the khopesh, the kukri, and others like them, all are weapons that worked for hundreds and some for thousands of years. The people back then had to have had good reasons to keep using them. Good job! Thank you!

[@Thrand11]

Agreed if not for certain more advanced armors that became very popular I think they would have never gone completely out of fashion. Technically they never really did go away and have been used since their creation.

[@chrisbasarab2446]

@@Thrand11 They were lost, more or less, with the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. All Western European swords are tributary to the Roman Spatha. When the new curved blades came into fashion, they were sharpened on the other side. Not to mention Feudalism may have eschewed even the appearance of an agriculturally inspired weapon in the hand of a knight, even if it was not agricultural at all. Also, culture is important and Christianity was strong on the appearance of mercy. A falx is many things, but merciful is not one of them. Then you have the cruciform shape of the Ulfberth and the later long swords and biddenhanders. More religious imagery. Remember, the Ulfberth signature uses the cross prominently, and back then the Norse were still mostly pagan, so Ulfberth himself may have been Christian. They could have made better quillons even before the Crusades, but that would have been less of a cross. Plus the rejection of pagan origin weapons for the holy warriors. A falchion and a messer are curved and well done, but they still resemble crosses when a khopesh could have done the same job just as well plus pulling a shield as a bonus. But a khopesh was a pagan sword, better left in the distant past. As for the armour, no sword is really good enough to consistently beat it, if the armour is well made. The falx worked only until the Romans modified their helmets. It was always an arms race between weapons and armour, with hammers being the ones meant to beat armour, not swords, and then we eventually got guns and all blades found a place in history books and museums until now, except for the ones used as a status symbol. Rapier means espada ropera after all, a sword meant to be worn with clothes, like we used to use fashionable canes until recently. All we can do is not forget this part of our culture. No one will ever use these blades in anger again, but it would be a pity to forget about them, or about the path technology took to reach us today. Unless we know where we come from, how can we truly make our way forward?

[@iraholden3606]

Would love to see some slow motion sica strikes with the point leading, can't understand how such a relatively large cut can be made compared to striking with the point tailing

[@antonarset]

The sika was not from the machete family. You are testing it the wrong way. I dont know how to explain in English, but the machete is for cutting such where you cut trees, while the sika is for cutting like you cut a bread, for slicing. That is why it has such form. Also you can catch it with the cutting edge on top or bottom (unlike the machete). With the sika you aim the hands, legs and neck, you can catch the shield. If you cut the hand the enemy will bleed and can not use his weapon, if you hit the leg he can not move. And they are the closest targets... Also you can catch the enemies hand when they are going back after the hit so the enemy will slice his hand on its own. It is a battle razor more than a sword (a bit like a big carambit). Although if you put that into the body and pull it out it will make a huge damage (the profile will look as a bow). With a shield it is very useful to slice things, even behind the shield. So yes, it is a weapon, and it was used in all Thrace (including north Thrace - Dacia), although in some regions were used also Scythian type daggers. Its big brother was called romphaia or rumpea, also known as a falx. In Dacia it was with longer grip and used with both hands according to the old barelefs but south from Danube it is a bit different - longer edge and a hole in the middle, and not so curved. It is a mystery what was that hole for, maybe for a rope connected to the arm, I dont know. Best regards!

[@kingkuroneko7253]

Nice sica

[@Thrand11]

Thanks

[@silvanobertolini5089]

Thika 👐 1 Thrrako-Yllhyrian blood.

[@ashsherman]

Always wondered why the Sicarii chose the sica over all the ither types of blades. If you believe the history of ybe sicarii and their demise at Masada, then it was most definitely Italy used in assassination of political figures in crowded areas

[@thinkingmind9103]

And Im Albanian , and I call "Thika" in my language does mean "Knife" in engl

[@dithi1327]

i gues its illyrian "sica" we say (thika) to (knife) and Shpata to sword

[@dwightehowell8179]

Looks like it would do a good job harvesting wheat head. Of course a good solid wack at the neck would very seriously incapacitate a man.

[@Thrand11]

Very true but doubt this design was ever used as a farm implement.

[@perka41]

Sica was Illyrian weapon used by tribe Dalmats, modern day Croatia.

[@julianmarco4185]

The Ilyrians came to Europe a few hundred years later. Some Romanians migrated there to escape wars too. They were named Aromanians. Also a lot of them in Greece too. The could have taken the weapons there.

[@lyxee5294]

@@julianmarco4185 there is no documentation of illyrian immigration, also illyrians are old inhabitant to that area as time itself

[@pixel7275]

Bro sica now “thika” in albanian means knife that sword is albanian

[@marinmarian342]

King Decebalus commited suicide with sica by cutting his throat to not get caught by the romans, it would be a shame for him and his kin. They usually say that dacians they would rather cut their throat than get caught and lose their freedom so to say. Something simmilar with japonese i guess.

[@Petavius17]

Think about it : the dacian sicas were anointed with viper's venom.

[@Thrand11]

Did you have a historical reference for this taking place?

[@Petavius17]

@@Thrand11 Of course, the great roman poet Publius Ovidius Naso who lived in exile between dacians wrote about it in his operas :Tristia and Epistulae ex Ponto.

[@Ju-es2cw]

The sica's origin is illyrian, not dacian

[@michaelhansen2818]

Just the tip. Lol

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!!

[@notme6859]

Well the weapon was condidered to be a helmet penetreator for the armys that used a iron helmet

[@halilibraimi6416]

Sica is not Dacian knife but it is Ilyrian sword

[@somerando1073]

I'm not sure about the actual Dacians/Thracians, but if I remember right the sica became popular in Rome and were particularly noted to be popular with the rebellious zealots. Basically it was a city weapon more than anything, though it could be a third battlefield weapon I suppose.

[@arberibert5756]

Possibly from Proto-Albanian *tsikā (whence Albanian thikë, "knife"), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- ("to sharpen") possibly via Illyrian. According to Dictionnaire des Antiquités Grecques et Romaines the name Sica comes from Proto-Indo-European root sek-, meaning "to cut", "to section". The Romans regarded the sica as a distinctive Illyrian weapon. The principal melee weapon of the Illyrians was the Sica. According to historian John Wilkes: Although a short curved sword was used by several peoples around the Mediterranean the Romans regarded the sica as a distinct Illyrian weapon used by the stealthy 'assassin' (sicarius)

[@jothegreek]

Wood cutting not Sicle . There are farming tools to cut brunches that are similar to this i saw as a kid many of them. You can take them and put them in use directly.

[@Thrand11]

Do you know the History of the Dacian War and Trajan?

[@jothegreek]

@@Thrand11 MY point is that comes from woodcuting not sicle . Sicle have far too less metal to be use as weapons as a machete.

[@facina3390]

Like a kukri on a diet! 😀

[@Thrand11]

Ja!!! LOL

[@rollothewalker5535]

Some are extremly kukri like.

[@bozhidarpetrov]

Sica is thracian weapon I think but however. Think about it

[@UNKNOWN-kb4hh]

Try some experiment with this sica as bumerang ! .......... Just be careful !

[@chetan.gondaliya]

we Indians have khukries for same attack weapon

[@Thrand11]

agreed

[@adrianaustralia4207]

Romanian special forces ,are werring with pride a Sica ( today)

[@Thrand11]

Good to hear it is a spectacular blade!

[@tiziogg6350]

Really?

[@dominusalbaniae7812]

Its Thraco-Illyrian

[@alexandrub8786]

Well,dacians where just thracians north of the danube.

[@dominusalbaniae7812]

@@alexandrub8786 thats what im saying, dacians were a thracian tribe so they should be called thracian

[@broadminded7774]

Why do you call Dacian a weapon that was clearly identified and labelled as an Illyrian sword by the Romans !?

[@wisdomandhistory]

Sanskrit (Indo-European). śitá "sharp"; borrowed into Lat. sicca "dagger", Lat. sicarii "assassins". Since we don't know how each of this populations called the weapon themselves ( because Ilyrian, Dacian and Thracian languages where not written languages) the name in use today for this weapon is in Latin (a universal written language) Also, if the weapon was so well known by the romans from the conflict with the Ilyrians, then why in the Roman-Dacian war they had to rethink and rebuild their armour and helmets to respond to the dacian's weapons, hence SICA also. P.S : Sica was not a sword, but a dagger

[@broadminded7774]

@@wisdomandhistory To begin with, Sanskrit is not synonymous with Indo-European, the Latin language has no direct connection with Sanskrit nor have the Latins had any contact with the Sanskrit speaking gens for them to borrow the word Sica or any other word for that matters, consequently the word Sica is a Latinized Illyrian word which in its original form would be (probably) something along the lines of Ts(z)ika or Thsika and its direct descendant is the Albanian word Thika = knife, As for the type or the use of the weapon, was of various lengths but it is mainly considered a short sword a melee weapon that can also fit the concept of a long knife, but can never be called a dagger since a dagger is a double straight knife, when Sika was a recurve blade believed to be the predecessor and inspiration of both Kopis and the Iberian Falcata. P.s ; Stop with the fake History! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sica

[@broadminded7774]

@@wisdomandhistory Oh, I almost forgot, do not to confuse Sika with Falx or the Thracian rhomphaia which is a completely different weapon and was actually used by the Dacians against the Romans. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falx

[@Kopellis]

THRACIAN ARMY UNITE

[@bobbybulan8472]

We never preform sacrifice in our 2500 yers documented history cristian it s wrong there .That sica it s a secondary weapon nothing more

[@ylberlezha]

This version is a dagger version it’s a little to small to carry into a large battle

[@felixmaican3843]

Look up secera...farm tool

[@stalinskaya9516]

Dacians may have had a similar type of weapon ,but I belive Sica comes from the Romans.

[@Thrand11]

The Sica is a Dacian dagger the Romans got it from them.

[@lyxee5294]

@@Thrand11 according to what source did the romans get it from them?

[@tomworth3239]

Not impressed with this tool

[@neymarmessironaldo5881]

I think it was mainly used for rituals or performing suicide