Apsam Co. London WC

[Jim McDougall]

Outstanding David!!!! This kind of information is so esoteric, and especially to discover these connections to Chile in the latter 19th c. I recall trying to do research of the unique 'corvo' knives which were used in the War of the Pacific (1879-1884) between Chile and the alliance of Peru and Bolivia over certain land claims etc.

In the first part of the war the emphasis was naval, in the picture shown is the Chilean corvette "Esmeralda" (left) in action at Battle of Iquique (May,1879) against the Peruvian ironclad "Huascar". The Esmeralda was sunk.
She had been built for Chile in England at Kent in 1854.

It appears that Chile had pretty defined commercial contact with England and interesting to see these arms reflecting those interests.