A Different American 1840 Type NCO Sword
Jul 29, 2009 14:25:48 GMT
Post by hotspur on Jul 29, 2009 14:25:48 GMT
I had posted this initial batch of pictures in the New Acquisitions section. Bought off of Ebay at a best offer sale that reflects what the sword in this condition would pretty much wholesale on. Both shown here are in the SBG price range and the shorty kind of a genuine bargain. This one is fairly scarce and was made my the Roby company in W.Chelmsford Massachusetts. The shinier long one is an 1864 made Ames. Both the Ames and Roby names go back in Chelmsford history to before the American Revolution. They are both interesting families to research. Ames could be placed back to very early colonial efforts and came across from England in the mid 17th century.
Roby is only listed in the books as manufacturing swords from 1861 until 1867, which is the best timline I can expect from this shorty. There are notes that could show Roby was involved in the sword trade right back to about 1853, when he partnered with another to take over a scythe factory.
The short sword is different in not just its length. One counterguard is cast close to the blade to make carry much more comfortable. The guards themselves are smaller in general than the Ames and the turned down shell is quite a bit smaller. Although the blade is decoratively etched, photos are hard to get, as the blade had been likely acid cleaned of rust and the sword is really near relic condition. Still quite sound and tight though. The sword had been originally covered with gold gilt and some traces remain, primarily on the underside of the guard. Best bet was that it was sold on the market to militia officers but the scale of it may have been also intended for young cadets or musicians use. There is no etch for the USMC, who are also reported to use this form and size. So, the attribution without that is not likely as a provenance.
The blade grind is quite different as well and shows a difference between European grinds and the American manufactured blades. Roby did import a lot of entire swords as well as just blades from Germany. This ws also true of Horstmann of Philadelphia. There are width differences noted on some of this general variety and some of the quite early Horstmann examples have blades as wide as the 18th century spadroons. Spadroons they are, to be sure. This shorty blade is 24 12" long and the fuller tapers out about two thirds of the total with the foible of the blade quite lenticular (picture a lentil crossection). The blade shows no evidence of ever being sharpened. That is true of my Ames shown with this. Overall, it would be unusual to see any of these spadroon sharpened during the era of the American Civil War.
So, there you have it. I keep saying I am quite done for the year but my short lists still get checked as to others grabbing them. While this particular variation is quite scarce, a run of the mill 19th century example can be found at very good prices, especially without a scabbard. One sale that kicked my butt was a classified run by Lee Reeves, a sometimes mentioned vendor here. he sold his Emerson with a scabbard off at $175, probably what his original cost had been (or close to that). Figure at least double that these days and regular retail more like $500 or $600 in excellent shape and with a scabbard.
Cheers
Hotspur; I am still a looney for more spadroonies. There are some quite special and affordable varieties of spadroon in general
Roby is only listed in the books as manufacturing swords from 1861 until 1867, which is the best timline I can expect from this shorty. There are notes that could show Roby was involved in the sword trade right back to about 1853, when he partnered with another to take over a scythe factory.
The short sword is different in not just its length. One counterguard is cast close to the blade to make carry much more comfortable. The guards themselves are smaller in general than the Ames and the turned down shell is quite a bit smaller. Although the blade is decoratively etched, photos are hard to get, as the blade had been likely acid cleaned of rust and the sword is really near relic condition. Still quite sound and tight though. The sword had been originally covered with gold gilt and some traces remain, primarily on the underside of the guard. Best bet was that it was sold on the market to militia officers but the scale of it may have been also intended for young cadets or musicians use. There is no etch for the USMC, who are also reported to use this form and size. So, the attribution without that is not likely as a provenance.
The blade grind is quite different as well and shows a difference between European grinds and the American manufactured blades. Roby did import a lot of entire swords as well as just blades from Germany. This ws also true of Horstmann of Philadelphia. There are width differences noted on some of this general variety and some of the quite early Horstmann examples have blades as wide as the 18th century spadroons. Spadroons they are, to be sure. This shorty blade is 24 12" long and the fuller tapers out about two thirds of the total with the foible of the blade quite lenticular (picture a lentil crossection). The blade shows no evidence of ever being sharpened. That is true of my Ames shown with this. Overall, it would be unusual to see any of these spadroon sharpened during the era of the American Civil War.
So, there you have it. I keep saying I am quite done for the year but my short lists still get checked as to others grabbing them. While this particular variation is quite scarce, a run of the mill 19th century example can be found at very good prices, especially without a scabbard. One sale that kicked my butt was a classified run by Lee Reeves, a sometimes mentioned vendor here. he sold his Emerson with a scabbard off at $175, probably what his original cost had been (or close to that). Figure at least double that these days and regular retail more like $500 or $600 in excellent shape and with a scabbard.
Cheers
Hotspur; I am still a looney for more spadroonies. There are some quite special and affordable varieties of spadroon in general
