Seven Hunting Swords.
Apr 23, 2023 18:16:05 GMT
Post by Uhlan on Apr 23, 2023 18:16:05 GMT
Seven Hunting Swords.
Introduction.
I bought these swords some years ago, cleaned, oiled and ,,stored'' them on the floor because ,,later they will be worked on'', we all know this never ending drill, there is always another new sabre that comes in the way, so when I had just posted about the French Chasseurs Superior Officers sword : sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/70744/sabre-dofficier-rieure-chasseurs-pied and one morning after that I got this kind of nudge from on High,
it became obvious I had to do something.
So, here are the results of ,,do something''.
Most of the blades are in bad shape, but some have interesting aspects. I have tried to restore them to the extent that one can now see through the evidence of serious neglect how they must have looked like when in their prime.
They are too far gone for the most part to eliminate all pitting and warts, but I could restore most of the polish to some level.
Anyway, I think they look quite a lot better now.
Another thing that came up is that this what you'll see here is what happens when good swords, sabres, etc, are not cared for.
While the owner may keep them in good condition, it is a more important question what will become of them when the owner exits this plane.
I rather give my stuff away in the knowledge that care will be provided, than sell them and hoping the buyer will not use my blades for gardening purposes and leave one of my blades to rot in his cabbage patch.
Maybe it's time for some of us to ponder this question. I know I do.
Coming generations must have the opportunity to really hold and handle them, to learn about them without having to see them through the glass of some vitrine in some far away museum.
Also, these old blades are in limited supply . Any old blade that rots is one blade less in the worlds stock.
We better learn to be careful.
Just saying.
Another thing I found during research is that there seems to be confusion as to what these swords are.
Some call them cuttoe, some even Naval cuttoe without there being any Naval connection at all in the symbols used on the furniture.
That the sword in question was once used by a Naval Officer does not make it a Naval cuttoe.
So, I stick with calling them hunting swords as this is, as far as I understand, what they are and were made for, be it purely ceremonial or in effect to be used for real.
As to dating: I think it is safe to say the swords without date hallmarks can be dated to the last half of the 18th century. Some, if not all, are French, but it is quite hard to be sure.
Hunting Sword 1.
The hilt.
There are no hallmarks, so, to be on safe side, I tag this one as made from nickel silver or brass.
I think the hilt was made from silver anyhow, as it emits that special silvery high pitched clear tone when struck with a metal object and when cleaning the metal with Holland Hallmark which cleans but also plates sterling silver at the same time, I found that the metal took the new sterling with surprising ease, something nickel silver does not do.
It demands a good and vigorous going over before nickel silver or brass takes the new silver plate.
A test kit I do not have.
This is the only sword with a chain knuckle bow. The others have an open grip.
This chain is probably also made from (nickel) silver.
This example begged for a new washer, so I made one.
I like this finishing touch in this instance.
The grip.
I think the grip was made from polished buffalo horn with a lively colour pattern, but doing research on Navy Cuttoes I found this page:
www.bygoneblades.com/buy-17th-century-english-naval-hanger . As the sword sold here is a spitting image of mine, including the strips of material on the sides of the grip, the grip of my sword may have been made of tortoise shell molded over a wood core too, but I cannot verify this. Anyway, it is an interesting article, though I have my doubts about the dating and the provenance of the blade.
(See notes : Viking Sword article)
The blade.
Looks very much like a shortened Spadroon blade. The tip seems to have been rounded off.
It has an etched Fleur de Lys on both sides, which seems to suggest this is a Solingen export blade.
(See notes: Viking sword article.)
I had an accident with my file manager. I deleted the ,,before'' pictures of the blade.
It is enough to say that it was covered in huge black spots, but under the grime I could see a high polish.
So I polished it right back to that standard though I could not all the scars out.
Surprisingly It was much easier to polish than many of my other blades.
Whether this is due to metal composition or something else I do not know.
This is one of the heavier and more functional blades of the lot.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 71 cm.
B.L: 58 cm.
B.W: 30 mm.
B.Th: 8 - 4 - 2 mm.
W: 569 grams.
Hunting sword.2.
The hilt.
8 facet, turned pommel buffalo horn grip, in a neo Roman style, which fits the hand very well.
Bronze, decorated, ferrule and bronze block guard with a cassette on either side.
In the cassettes are depicted a standing and crouching dog or wolf on a sable background.
The guillons have neo Egyptian decorations and dog heads at the end.
This probably being a French sword I think the dogs portraits this one:
It has a grooved oval peen block.
All metal parts were once gilded.
The blade.
Double fullered blade with a short ricasso.
On one side on the ricasso is the name of the maker or supplier of the sword: L. A. Goei.
L'Hoste nor Bezdek have anything on this maker or furbisher, but the name suggests a Southern Dutch (Belgium now) or Northern French provenance.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 69 cm.
B.L: 54 cm.
B.W: 32 mm.
B. Th: 7.35 - 5.48 _ 3.45 mm.
W: 537 grams.
This is a rather heavy and fully functional well made sword.
The double fuller design makes it stiff and good for thrusting.
The guard is very sturdy and on the whole this sword can take a beating.
Though this sword may have been ceremonial, as it once was gilded, it could still do the job.
I think it is very nice indeed.
Hunting sword 3.
This sword has engraved Kabbalistic texts on the blade.
L'Hoste regards these texts as ,, Enigmatic''.
See l'Hoste :: Armes Blanches, page 110.
The hilt.
Horn grip with two cracks over the length, decorated with six silver olives. (Pins in the shape of a half olive)
Hallmarked silver guard with two guillons and a silver cover for the scabbard to slide into.
Silver ferrule hallmarked with Discharge mark.
Hallmarks:
Peen on silver peen block on silver plate formed in the shape of the top of the grip.
Notice that HS4 has the same guard and ferrule.
The blade.
Very nice cutting blade with hand engraved text on both sides, with a row of engraved arrows on the spine.
The entrelac on both sides displays the same message:
La(?).........(unreadable)
Marchand Fournisseur
et Maitre Arquebusier
a Poitiers.
On the blade on one side: See image.
On the other side: See image.
Numbers.
L.O.A: 79 cm.
B.L: 62.5 cm.
B.W: 38 mm.
B.Th: 6 - 3 - 1 mm.
W: 469 grams.
Another ,,Enigmatic'' text.
Hunting Sword 4.
Grip.
Carved black horn grip decorated with a strip of silver sheet and twisted silver
wire in the same style of decoration as seen on the grip of HS 7.
One, the lower, wire is missing.
Silver pommel cap with laughing man face (Green Man? decoration and silver peen block.
Silver guillons are hallmarked with 4 hallmarks. (See website in the notes)
The ferrule is marked with the Discharge hallmark.
The hallmarks indicate the period of manufacture as 1760 - 1761.
Notice that HS3 has the same guard and ferrule.
Blade.
Entrelacs with motto over two sides.
Motto: Sy la fortune me tourmente, l'espérance me content.
Translation :: ,,If fortune torments me, hope pleases me.'' Louise de Voordt » End 16th Century. Popular French literary motto.
On one side, in the fuller: Dog chasing stag.
On the other side: Dog chasing wild boar.
These transfer engravings remind me of illustrations in medieval manuscripts.
The blade is almost identical with the blade of the Amsterdam HS 7.
Work.
The grip was very dirty, covered in crap and ancient wax.
Cleaned with toothpicks and Q tips with alcohol.
Took two days.
Cleaned the silver parts with Silver Plater, fixed the lose grip wire.
My ,,workstation''.
The blade was black and I mean black. Cleaned with 240 - 400 - 600 grid followed with Commandant.
Some dark and deep pitting will remain, since a full recovery is not feasible.
The tip is missing, but since this blade is identical with the Amsterdam HS which seems to be intact, it could have been 58 cm long.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 68 cm.
B.L: 52.5 cm.
B.W: 25 mm.
B.Th: 6 - 3.5 - 2 mm.
Weight: 286 grams.
Nice looking sword of the luxury class.
The weight and the silver guard, which does not look like it could withstand the antics of a large stag or very annoyed wild boar,
together with the rather flimsy blade make me think this was a purely ceremonial affair.
However it is looking quite smart indeed and one could do chickens with it if so inclined. Or rustic barn rats.
A Poodle sized New York rat would be a challenge.
Hunting Sword 5.
The grip.
Carved black horn grip and pommel cap, wired with two strands of copper wire with a strip of thin copper sheet between them.
At the pommel end the wires and strip had gone a little lose. I fixed that.
On top of the pommel cap sits a bronze peen plateau holding the peen.
Bronze ferrule and guard, the guillons ending in a straight cut off, resembling hoofs(?).
The was evidence the metal parts were once silver plated, but my plate does not want to take.
The blade.
The medium long ricasso (neo entrelac) has three shallow, hammered in, indentations on one side, on the other side only rudimentary.
There are no makers marks or other marks of any kind.
The rest of the blade has one shallow and wide fuller going up to the spear point double edged tip, with one narrow but deep fuller under the spine.
The overall I get is that the blade was done in an uninterested, even sloppy, fashion, with soft lines.
Of course it can be said that maybe the blade has undergone more than one clean up action in its long life,
with the result that it now looks rather tired and washed out, but the evidence of blade lamination, which can be seen all over the blade,
makes me think this is somekind of factory (Solingen?) second.
There was evidence of counter polish on both sides of the ricasso, so I brought that back to some extend.
The blade is of the same type as the blade from H.S.4 and H.S.7.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 67.5 cm.
B.L: 53.5 cm.
B.W: 30 mm.
B.Th: 7 - 3 - 2 mm.
W: 375 grams.
Conclusion.
Nice looking grip with a carved bone or horn pommel cap mounted on a sloppely made blade.
Hunting Sword 6.
The grip.
Blond, variegated light brown carved horn grip with double copper wire and a thin copper sheet strip between the strands.
The wire and strip show no signs of ever have been plated. Nor gild nor silver could be found.
The slightly patinated copper strip really looks nice on the horn and in combination with the steel guard and ferrule.
The pommel consists of an oval steel plate with a small peen block on top and an acorn like peen nut.
Just for kicks I added a leather washer to top it up.
The blade.
Nice and functional (See numbers) unmarked blade with one wide and one narrow fuller and a spear double edged tip section.
The tip section combined with the ending of the narrow fuller makes me think of a Moroha Zukuri katana. (See picture)
It appears to have snapped and welded again long ago.
At that point there is heavy pitting in two rows.
The blade has a molded leather scabbard, finely stitched at the back and with period steel furniture with small rings. I do not think the scabbard is original but the furniture probably is.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 74.5 cm.
B.L: 61. cm.
B.W: 27 mm.
B.Th: 8 - 4 - 2 mm.
W: 439 grams.
All in all one of the nicer swords in this bunch.
Sober looking with a once sturdy and fully functional and interesting blade.
Cuttoe Hunting Sword from the American Revolution.
Hunting Sword 7.
This one has a special place in my little collection.
It was made in one of the oldest parts of Amsterdam.
I posted about it here: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/44822/amsterdam-town-guard-sword-bonus .
The grip.
Facetted wood core grip covered in shagreen with some small parts missing.
The guard is missing (?) but there are a bronze ferrule, pommel cover and small peen block.
The blade.
Strong and functional blade with in the entrelacs the address of the maker, with
an engraving of a dog chasing a boar in the wide fullers on both sides.
Between the spine and the wide fuller is a narrow fuller.
There is an arrow engraved on the spine.
The spear point tip section is double edged.
The blade is of the same type as H.S.4 and H.S.5.
Before the work.
The numbers.
L.O.A: 68.5 cm.
B.L: 57 cm.
B.W: 28 mm.
B.Th: 9 - 4 - 2 mm.
W: 365 grams.
Cheers.
The notes.
Die Plaute :: www.waffensammler-kuratorium.de/plaute/plauteti.html
The Hunting Sword: The Highly Decorated Slayer of Beasts • Sword Encyclopedia :: //swordencyclopedia.com/hunting-swo
Hunting Swords – Arms & Armor :: www.arms-n-armor.com/blogs/news/hunting-swords
Hunting Sword no1 - Ethnographic Arms & Armour :: www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18629
Please help ID a hunting sword -- myArmoury.comhttp://myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.20302.html
Diego de Çaias (active c. 1530-52) - Hunting sword, by-knife and scabbard :: www.rct.uk/collection/61316/hunting-sword-by-knife-and-scabbard
Online Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmarks & Makers' Marks :: www.925-1000.com/
English silver hallmarks: British maker's marks identification PL-PZ :: www.silvercollection.it/englishsilvermarksXP2.html
Marks in Metals German :: www.worthpoint.com/marks/searchDetails?q=Silver+Plate&category=metals
FRENCH SILVER MARKS - LES POINCONS DE L'ARGENT FRANÇAIS: AA-AG :: www.silvercollection.it/frenchsilversmiths.html
Looking for examples of medieval engravings on swords -- myArmoury.com :: myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.13423.html
Swords Throughout History (A History & Timeline of Swords) - Working the Flame :: workingtheflame.com/sword-history/
The “Hunting Bag” of the 18th-19th Century American Frontier :: www.frontieramericanillustratednews.com/post/the-hunting-bag-of-the-19th-century-frontier
Hunting Sword with Scabbard, Knife, and Fork | German | The Metropolitan Museum of Art :: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/22920
18th Century Sawback Hunting Sword. | Bygone Blades :: bygoneblades.com/buy-18th-century-sawback-hunting-sword
19th Century German hunting Sword - Ethnographic Arms & Armour :: www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=17900
The Hunting Sword | The Minuteman Forum :: minuteman.boards.net/thread/779/hunting-sword
Victorian Swords — Were hunting swords used for anything other than... :: victoriansword.tumblr.com/post/184085823411/were-hunting-swords-used-for-anything-other-than
Baltimore Style American Hunting Sword :: collegehillarsenal.com/baltimore-style-american-hunting-sword
Amsterdam Town Guard Sword + Bonus. | SBG Sword Forum :: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/44822/amsterdam-town-guard-sword-bonus
HS4 :: French silverplate marks: Names, Initials and Symbols :: www.silvercollection.it/FRENCHHALLMARKSOLD.html
HS4 :: French silverplate marks: Names, Initials and Symbols :: www.silvercollection.it/FRENCHSILVERPLATEMARKS.html
« Sy la forteune me tourment, l'espérance me content. Louise de Voordt » :: ccfr.bnf.fr/portailccfr/ark:/16871/004D43310015
HS4 :: Medieval Bestiary : Manuscripts : Koninklijke Bibliotheek KB, 78 D 40 :: bestiary.ca/manuscripts/manugallery5085.htm
HS 1 :: English 17th Century Naval Cuttoe/Hanger | Bygone Blades :: www.bygoneblades.com/buy-17th-century-english-naval-hanger
HS.1 :: American Revolutionary War Naval Officer’s Silver-Hilted Sword | American Powder Horns :: americanpowderhorns.com/?p=103
