a sword of ice-brook temper
Preserved but no longer current.
Of the very best quality. The Spaniards used to plunge their swords and other weapons, while hot from the forge, into the brook Salo [Xalon], near Bilbilis, in Celtiberia, to harden them. The water of this brook is very cold.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “a sword of ice-brook temper” mean?
Of the very best quality. The Spaniards used to plunge their swords and other weapons, while hot from the forge, into the brook Salo [Xalon], near Bilbilis, in Celtiberia, to harden them. The water of this brook is very cold.
Is “a sword of ice-brook temper” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.