Apr 27, 2020
Apr 26, 2007
Apr 26, 2007

Hunting Sword

Hunting Sword

c. 1760–70

Steel; pierced and chiseled cast-iron hilt ; blade engraved

Support: Hilt chased and pierced

Overall: 65 cm (25 9/16 in.); Blade: 52.9 cm (20 13/16 in.); Quillions: 8.9 cm (3 1/2 in.); Grip: 11.6 cm (4 9/16 in.)

Weight: 400 g (14.11 oz.)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1686

Did you know?

Besides being viewed as a recreation for European nobility and an ancient and hereditary right, hunting was recognized as a necessary and pragmatic skill which supplied an additional source of food and dispatched animals which were considered a menace.

Description

No gentleman's hunting costume was complete without a hunting sword. These special sidearms, designed primarily as defense against dangerous game in the field, were also used to dispatch game at the end of a chase. It was a point of honor among aristocratic hunters to carve and section the game in the field, a further function for which these swords were well suited. They were often made as a set, or garniture, and included smaller knives, forks, and other implements for carving the carcass.

See also

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