Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - Delux U.S. or British 18th Century Silver Hilt Saber Elephant Ivory Grip

M ELEY · 17th December 2014, 02:20 AM

Absolutely beautiful sword! The pommel and general hilt shape are French in nature, but I suspect the pattern was generic for any high officer's type swords, much as was customary in the previous century (officers had a pic of which pattern they wanted). Given the time period (1800-15-ish), it seems a little strange that a Brit officer would order a sword 'in the French style'. I know American officers definitely took to some of the French patterns. Wooley & Deakin might have customized an order for such. I know, it was the War of 1812 period and we (yanks) were at war with Britain, but just as back in the Rev War, some of the English sword makers sometimes looked the other way when it came to who was making the order. Its also possible that it slipped into that period prior to us being on England's bad side. I think, despite the French pattern, that it was NOT made for the French by Wooley, because from the last decade of the 18th until the fist quarter of the 19th, England and France decidedly didn't like each other-

17th December 2014, 02:20 AM	#7
M ELEY Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: NC, U.S.A. Posts: 2,070	Absolutely beautiful sword! The pommel and general hilt shape are French in nature, but I suspect the pattern was generic for any high officer's type swords, much as was customary in the previous century (officers had a pic of which pattern they wanted). Given the time period (1800-15-ish), it seems a little strange that a Brit officer would order a sword 'in the French style'. I know American officers definitely took to some of the French patterns. Wooley & Deakin might have customized an order for such. I know, it was the War of 1812 period and we (yanks) were at war with Britain, but just as back in the Rev War, some of the English sword makers sometimes looked the other way when it came to who was making the order. Its also possible that it slipped into that period prior to us being on England's bad side. I think, despite the French pattern, that it was NOT made for the French by Wooley, because from the last decade of the 18th until the fist quarter of the 19th, England and France decidedly didn't like each other- Last edited by M ELEY; 18th December 2014 at 12:10 AM.