The Anathame is a rare, semi-sentient xenos sword from the Kinebrach, infamous for the wound it dealt to Warmaster Horus. Its theft by Erebus helped set the Horus Heresy in motion, and its shards were later forged into athames used by the Word Bearers.
What the anathame is
An anathame is a knife or sword made by the Kinebrach, a xenos race the Interex had conquered. It has a flint-like blade and a golden hilt, but its real danger is that it’s semi-sentient.
The Interex believed you could instruct an anathame to recognise a specific person. Once it had a name, it could wound that person in a way their body couldn’t heal. The Interex didn’t know how to make more, so they kept the ones they had locked away.
How it reached Horus
During the Great Crusade, the 63rd Expeditionary Fleet encountered the Interex. At least one anathame was displayed in the Hall of Devices on Xenobia Principis. Erebus, First Chaplain of the Word Bearers, stole it and destroyed the hall, then let the Interex blame Horus’s party. That accusation helped spark the Battle of Xenobia Principis.
Erebus took the blade to Davin’s moon and gave it to Eugan Temba, a governor already tainted by Chaos. When Horus confronted Temba, Temba spoke Horus’s name to the anathame and attacked with impossible speed, driving it through the Warmaster’s left shoulder before Horus killed him.
Why the wound mattered
Any normal blade would’ve left Horus able to heal, but the anathame had his name. His Larraman cells failed to clot the wound, and his Astartes physiology couldn’t close it.
Apothecary Vaddon realised he needed the weapon itself to understand the injury. Garviel Loken and a small team recovered it from Davin’s moon, but Fabius Bile soon took it using the Warmaster’s Seal and delivered it to Fulgrim. Fulgrim later used the anathame to kill Commander Vespasian and the remembrancer Ostian Delafour.
Shards and athames
Before the Battle of Calth, Erebus broke eight shards from the anathame and forged them into smaller blades called athames. He handed seven to Word Bearers commanders, including Kor Phaeron and Morpal Cxir.
The original anathame ended up back with Fabius Bile, who learned to influence it. So the weapon that nearly killed Horus didn’t disappear, it was split, copied, and passed into the hands of Chaos.
Key facts
- The anathame is a semi-sentient xenos blade made by the Kinebrach.
- It can be instructed to recognise a specific person, letting it wound them beyond normal healing.
- Erebus stole one from the Interex and gave it to Eugan Temba, who used it on Horus.
- Horus’s Larraman cells failed to clot the wound, which normal weapons wouldn’t have caused.
- Erebus later broke eight shards from it to forge athames for the Word Bearers.
- Fulgrim used the anathame to kill Commander Vespasian and remembrancer Ostian Delafour.
FAQ
What is the anathame in Warhammer 40k?
It’s a semi-sentient xenos blade made by the Kinebrach. It can be told a person’s name, and once it has that name it can wound them in a way they can’t heal.
Who used the anathame to wound Horus?
Eugan Temba, the Chaos-tainted governor of Davin’s moon, spoke Horus’s name to the blade and stabbed him in the shoulder. Erebus had given him the weapon.
What happened to the anathame after Horus was wounded?
It was recovered by Loken’s team, taken by Fabius Bile, and given to Fulgrim. Later, Erebus broke off shards to forge athames for the Word Bearers.