A Spanish colonial broadsword/cutlass

M ELEY · 22nd October 2018, 01:18 AM

Excellent points made by both of you gents concerning the hexagonal blades and the refurbishing of these and other weapons in colonial America and further points south. Jim, you bring up the important and often over-looked aspect of trade and how many blades and weapons from other cultures often made the rounds to other places. We have had this conversation on the Forum many times about the Brazilian sabers that have Philippine aspects and Sudanese swords with Solingen blades. Often it seems, some collectors are bothered by the 'borrowed' factor of these pieces and have a tendency to steer clear of them, which is a shame. These artifacts, for all of their "composite" nature, are a true reflection of where two cultures meet and the influences they had over each other. It is similar to the trends of the patterns as well, such as British swords taking on an Arabic tone after Nelson's Egyptian campaign.

My point is I understand there will always be purists in collecting and researching. It it isn't a 'model 1796 something-something or a recognized or repeated pattern, they don't want it. The problem is, the same scholars might be biased and believe that all composites are fakes done at a later time or they will brand them as 'inferior workmanship' made by a dunce blacksmith. This attitude really miffs me! It is counter-productive to educating ourselves about the time period, culture and events going on that brought these into being! If we had this attitude about composite-types, we would have to boycott the majority of American made weapons used during the Revolution, the entire list of 'private purchase' naval weapons up until the end of Age of Fighting Sail', colonial Spanish (and later Mexican) swords, not to mention all of the weapons of the Confederacy, often slapped together in primitive forges under times of desperation. I seemed to have gone off a bit! Sorry!

BTW, the 4th sword down (German broadsword with brass lion hilt) used to be mine. It was a 6-sided blade made by Hirschberg & Schimmerbaum? Marked 'Solingen' one side and the Spanish motto on the other, made for the Span market here in the colonies (these two merchants were active in the Americas post 1795). Note the hilt (a composite!) is from a French sword.

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22nd October 2018, 01:18 AM	#12
M ELEY Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: NC, U.S.A. Posts: 2,166	Excellent points made by both of you gents concerning the hexagonal blades and the refurbishing of these and other weapons in colonial America and further points south. Jim, you bring up the important and often over-looked aspect of trade and how many blades and weapons from other cultures often made the rounds to other places. We have had this conversation on the Forum many times about the Brazilian sabers that have Philippine aspects and Sudanese swords with Solingen blades. Often it seems, some collectors are bothered by the 'borrowed' factor of these pieces and have a tendency to steer clear of them, which is a shame. These artifacts, for all of their "composite" nature, are a true reflection of where two cultures meet and the influences they had over each other. It is similar to the trends of the patterns as well, such as British swords taking on an Arabic tone after Nelson's Egyptian campaign. My point is I understand there will always be purists in collecting and researching. It it isn't a 'model 1796 something-something or a recognized or repeated pattern, they don't want it. The problem is, the same scholars might be biased and believe that all composites are fakes done at a later time or they will brand them as 'inferior workmanship' made by a dunce blacksmith. This attitude really miffs me! It is counter-productive to educating ourselves about the time period, culture and events going on that brought these into being! If we had this attitude about composite-types, we would have to boycott the majority of American made weapons used during the Revolution, the entire list of 'private purchase' naval weapons up until the end of Age of Fighting Sail', colonial Spanish (and later Mexican) swords, not to mention all of the weapons of the Confederacy, often slapped together in primitive forges under times of desperation. I seemed to have gone off a bit! Sorry! BTW, the 4th sword down (German broadsword with brass lion hilt) used to be mine. It was a 6-sided blade made by Hirschberg & Schimmerbaum? Marked 'Solingen' one side and the Spanish motto on the other, made for the Span market here in the colonies (these two merchants were active in the Americas post 1795). Note the hilt (a composite!) is from a French sword.