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The zanbato (斬馬刀, lit. "horse-slaying sword" or "horse-chopping saber"), also spelled zanbatou or zambatou, was an especially large type of sword used in the Sengoku Period in Japan, consisting of a large blade on a pole. It was invented to combat cavalrymen by cutting their horses out from under them, or by killing horse and rider in a single blow. The zanbato only stayed in service for a short period of time as it proved far too heavy for normal use, often requiring two people to wield.
The zanbato is mostly known today as the trademark weapon of Sagara Sanosuke, one of the characters in the anime and manga Rurouni Kenshin, although he only uses it for a brief period.
The historical zanbato was much shorter and smaller than the one featured in the anime, being about half blade and half handle (while the blade alone on Sanosuke's weapon is taller than he is, and accounts for 3/4 of the length of the weapon).
There was a Chinese weapon of the Song Dynasty also written as 斬馬刀 (zhǎn mǎ dāo or zhanmadao) which is similar to the zanbato. Dating to 1027, it was used as an anti-cavalry weapon. Surviving examples include a sword that might resemble a nagamaki in construction; it had a wrapped handle 37 cm long making it easy to grip for two hands. The blade was 114 cm long and very straight with a slight curve in the last half. This made it greatly resemble what was probably its Japanese derivative, the later Zanbato.
Possible variations of these Chinese and Japanese swords were the mai dao, and the wodao.
East Asian swords
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