and other blades of similar length between 1 and 2 ft, they are sometimes construed as swords because of their longer blades. This is especially the case for weapons from antiquity, made before the development of high quality steel that is necessary for longer swords, in particular:

*Iron Age swords:
**Seax, a tool and weapon, common in Northern Europe
**[[Gladius]], an early ancient Roman thrusting shortsword for legionaries