Ricasso

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A ricasso is a part of some sword and knife blades. It is an unsharpened and unbevelled section just above the guard or handle.

The first ricassos (or first labelled as such) were found on larger Western swords beginning in the Late Middle Ages. In use, this allowed the swordsman to choke up, shorten his grip, or half-sword, enabling better control and manipulation of the blade and allowing the weapon to be more effective in thrusting against both armoured and unarmoured opponents. Later longswords, claymores, rapiers and other large blades often had this feature. Many modern knives also include an unbeveled section referred to as a ricasso.

Ricasso in swords (contrary to knives) sometimes terminate with quillons or flukes, which is to the ricasso what the guard is to the hilt. In some swords or weapons the ricasso was used to reflect and block attacks. Having no edge, it's less prone to damage. The ricasso on a knife usually serves the purpose of allowing a user to choke up above the guard and work more carefully or with more direct pressure. Some knives have notches cut into the portion of the ricasso at the back of the blade just past the guard, so it may be used to choke up with less risk of the thumb sliding.