Pirate Collectibles Back In Fashion

Pirates were bloodthirsty killers whose sole motivation was to gain at the expense of others on the sea. Stories of ‘marooning’ and burying people up their necks are not fable, but fact. These things did happen and all in the name of profit. No doubt there were those who were forced into this way of living, but all told, there can be no glorifying of their activities.

Yet we adore them! We love and accept characters such as Captain Jack Sparrow as being typical pirates, with their concern for the damsel in distress, much as knights of old are portrayed in the same way. We are also displaying this by snapping up pirate collectibles wherever we can get them. So what is available, and what exactly is a pirate collectible?

How about a pirate cutlass? It is unlikely that you will come across a genuine cutlass used by a known pirate anywhere but in a museum. However, it is possible to acquire a replica cutlass that is true in every detail to the original. A typical pirate cutlass had a thick, slightly curved blade just over two feet in length. There were many variants to this basic design, and many of these are available as replicas.

There are not many authentic pirate collectibles available to the public, and there is no real definition of what makes an item specifically related to pirates as such. Pirate weapons and clothing were those of the day, and frequently acquired from the ships that they took. Nothing was wasted, and pirates tried not to sink ships but to capture them, and to keep and sell everything aboard them. The swords are popular, but if you opt to get one you should also have the hanger. 18th and 19th Century pirates, the two centuries in which pirates were most active, did not use scabbards for their swords and cutlasses, but hangers. These were belts with ‘frogs’, or openings, between layers of belt through which the sword was hung.

The pirate guns were flintlocks, frequently of the wide mouthed ‘blunderbus’ design, though the design changed according to the country of origination. Most 18th century pirates were Spanish, French and English, though there were pirates of every nationality, including Portuguese, and North African. The Corsairs were French and the Barbary Corsairs were Turks. They would track boats for days deciding whether to attack them or not, but rarely used shot since that would damage the vessel that they wished to capture, not to destroy.

Their tactic would be fly a friendly flag as they approached a ship, then strike it and raise the pirate flag, the skull and crossbones. They would then fire one shot that generally persuaded the captain of the other ship to strike colors and surrender. In that way they took the ship complete and none of the treasure on board was lost.

Replica pirate flags are popular, as are pirate apparel such as coats, pirate hats and general ‘pirate type’ clothing that is based upon real clothing known to be worn by pirates of the period. All of these reproduction articles are great for holding ‘pirate evenings’ on the beach or barbecues. You can even purchase replica guns of the types described above. These are true replicas based upon actual weapons belonging to known pirates.

Famous pirates include Henry Morgan, known to have roasted a woman on a stove for refusing to reveal the whereabouts of her jewelry, and L’Ollonaise was another, whose favorite pastime was tying a cord round a victim’s head across the eyes, and tightening it until the eyes popped out. Pirates were not the swashbuckling heroes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’, though one punishment that is myth is ‘walking the plank’. This is a practice invented by novelists and there are no known records of this happening. You will not find planks among the pirate collectibles available online!

Whatever your feelings about pirates are, there is no doubt that they fascinate many people. Pirate collectibles are back in fashion, if they ever went out of fashion, and pirate replicas are popular for beach parties and such events as themed barbecues. Although this has been fuelled recently by the popularized view of pirates as presented in the aforementioned movie, it matters very little, and if that is what you enjoy then there is a wide variety of artifacts available to enable you to improve on your collection.