Anthony Rischard is a blacksmith, historical martial arts practitioner and proprietor of Black Armoury, one of the largest suppliers of historical martial arts gear in Europe. In our conversation we talk about how Anthony gave up his office job to become a full time blacksmith in France, and his move into starting Black Armoury. Have a listen to find out why they began producing suits of armour made entirely from synthetic materials and what the benefits of plastic are compared to steel. The last couple of years have been unusually challenging for Anthony’s business, especially with the current supply issues across Europe and the situation in Ukraine.
There are a lot of photos to share with you!
Firstly, here is Guy’s 1740 Girard:
Now, for the hot metal:
Château de Saint Saturnin
https://www.chateaudesaintsaturnin.com/en/history
https://www.chateaudesaintsaturnin.com/en/restauration
Door from Notre Dame de Mailhat (Lamongie France)
Before:
After:
Anthony’s favorite longsword:
Pavel Moc blade, rehlilted by Anthony. Fun fact: the grip covering is 1930’s lizard skin from the Chanel workshops, these were used for the backing of clamshell ladies pocket mirrors. A great advantage of working in restoration – people give you all sorts of weird and wonderful things.
