High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Rhomphaia was a close combat bladed weapon used by the Thracians as early as 400 BC. Most rhomphaias were polearms, featuring a straight or slightly curved single-edged blade attached to a pole that was considerably shorter than the blade. Some rhomphaias had short handles that extended to only the length of the blade. Although the rhomphaia was similar to the Falx, most archaeological evidence suggests that rhomphaias were forged with straight or slightly curved blades, presumably to enable their use as both a thrusting and slashing weapon. The blade itself was constructed of iron and used a triangular cross section to accommodate the single cutting edge with a tang of rectangular cross section. Length varied, but a typical rhomphaia would have a blade of approximately 60–80 cm and a tang of approximately 50 cm. From the length of the tang, it can be presumed that when attached to the hilt, this portion of the weapon would be of similar length to the blade.