Thomas Del Mar - Arms & Armour

251
AN ITALIAN SWEPT-HILT RAPIER, EARLY 17TH CENTURY
with two-stage tapering blade, retaining traces of a
stamped inscription within a short fuller on each face,
tapering ricasso engraved with a maker’s mark on each
side, steel hilt formed of a symmetrical arrangement of
moulded bars comprising a pair of vertically recurved
quillons with bulbous terminals each pierced with an
elaborate pattern of interlacing branches, triangular
écusson, knuckle-guard, outer ring-guard joined to the
knuckle-guard by an additional bar, two lower ring-guards
of diminishing size, the lower fitted with a pierced sprungin
plate (the outer missing its plate), a pair of arms, globular
pommel pierced with an elaborate pattern of interlacing
twigs matching the quillons, and the bars all interrupted
with globular mouldings pierced en suite with the quillons
and pommel (later grip, pitted and cleaned throughout)
112cm; 44in blade
Inv. no. E034.
£3000-4000
108
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252
AN ENGLISH BASKET-HILTED BACKSWORD, THIRD
QUARTER OF THE 18TH CENTURY
with fullered blade (the lower half missing), formed with a
pair of brass filled recesses at the forte (losses),
asymmetrical steel hilt formed of slender bars arranged in a
grid pattern, drawn-in at the base into three heart-shaped
panels and at the top into three diamond-shaped panels
(one missing), plain bun-shaped pommel, and later wooden
grip (patinated throughout, two bars of the hilt cracked)
34.5cm; 13I in blade
Inv. no. E327.
£400-500