May 8-10, 2024 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/9/2024
For another example by this maker, see 192.S on pg. 125 of "Swords and Blades of the American Revolution" by George Neumann. For more information on this maker and to see a signed J. Snow example with this hilt, see pgs. 264-268 of "American Silver-Hilted Revolutionary and Early Federal Swords Volume I" by Daniel D. Hartzler. Jeremiah Snow III lived between 1735 and 1803 and was born in Boston and worked in Charlestown, Massachusetts. "Because of the desire for personal sidearms during the Revolutionary War, he turned to making brass cavalry swords for the Patriots" Hartzler states. After the war, he moved to Springfield, Massachusetts. His style of hilt with the urn-type pommel and spiral-engraved grip is very distinct. The blade has the first 14 - 1/2" fire blued and a top single fuller on each side. Blade is probably American. The hilt is classic Snow in its form and mounts, with a brass stirrup hilt with open counterguard with wide outer loop on the obverse and teardrop ending to the quillon, and an urn-shaped pommel. The spiral-grooved, cherry wood grip bears 75-80% of its original black japanning or paint, which was done to achieve a mock ebony-wood finish. The blackened leather scabbard is 2/3ds intact, the bottom third with drag now missing. The throat of the scabbard is made from sheet brass, with a diamond-shaped frog stud brazed on, while the leather of the scabbard is decorated with tooling lines and struck dots, the former done as an intersecting sequence down its length, a diamond followed by two lozenges, and repeat. The scabbard remains seated in the frog of the original shoulderbelt, also of black cowhide on the obverse face and russet leather on the recto. A superb example, one of the finest Snow-attributed short sabers that we are aware of at the present date. CONDITION: There is some minor flaking to the japanning on the grip, as noted above, and a pleasing dark mustard patina on the mounts of hilt and scabbard; there are a few, shallow nicks down the edge of the blade and one small spot of pitting on the lower obverse of blade; the unblued lower portion of blade a gunmetal grey in tone. This sword is illustrated and discussed on pp. 190-191 of "For Liberty I Live."
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