Brass knuckles
weapon used in hand-to-hand combat
Brass knuckles (also referred to as brass knucks, knuckledusters, iron fists and paperweights, among other names) are melee weapons used primarily in hand-to-hand combat. They are fitted and designed to be worn around the knuckles of the human hand. Despite their name, they are often made from steel, wood, aluminium, plastics or carbon fibers and not necessarily brass.
Designed to preserve and concentrate a punch's force by directing it toward a harder and smaller contact area, they result in increased tissue disruption, including an increased likelihood of fracturing the intended target's bones on impact. The extended and rounded palm grip also spreads the counter-force across the attacker's palm, which would otherwise have been absorbed primarily by the attacker's fingers. This reduces the likelihood of damage to the attacker's fingers.
The weapon is controversial for its easy concealability and its association with organized crime; as a result it is illegal to own and use in a number of countries and provinces.
History and variations
During the 19th century, cast iron, brass, lead, and wood knuckles were made in the United States during the American Civil War (1861–1865). Soldiers would often buy cast iron or brass knuckles. If they could not buy them, they would carve their own from wood, or cast them at camp by melting lead bullets and using a mold in the dirt.
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This entry incorporates text from “Brass knuckles” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.