Quote:
Originally Posted by Radboud
Jim, the origin of the Andrea Ferrara blades has been traced back to Italy. There exists a paper record of an order for X number of blades to be shipped to England each month
If you have a spare hour, this video is well worth the watch:
Would the Real Andrea Ferrara Please Stand up |
True, the Ferrara brothers ,Zandona (Donato) and Andrea working in a shop in Fisterre from c.1566, and in Dec.1578 were visited by men from London to sign an agreement to supply bi monthly boxes of swords for a ten year period.
They seem to have had a notoriety as they were mentioned in an important treatise of 1567 by Cigogna concerning warfare and weaponry.
Andrea died in 1612.
It is unclear how much of this apparent contract ever realized, but clearly the Andrea Ferara name was well known in England, later in Scotland of course. While these blades were ubiquitous on Scottish basket hilts from second half of 17th century into 18th, I have a mortuary sword (believed Hounslow) from c.1640s with ANDREA FERARA blade.
Though blades with this famed name are found in many countries, it seems they derive primarily from Solingen shops where they found their way to these other places via trade networks.
See: "Master Swordsmiths of Feltre and Belluno". by Michele Vello & Fabriio Tonin, 2017.