Gladius

Finally, the Romans made the gladius—sharp, of highly-tempered steel, and strongly piercing—the first real sword (Figs. 17, 18, 19), of which only five specimens are now known to exist.

The gladius was effective either for cutting or for thrusting and was used by legionaries and auxiliaries.

From the Cretaceous of North America fossilised gladii in the enigmatic genus Tusoteuthis have been estimated to give a mantle length (body size) of 1.8m, just less than that of the giant squid’s.