December 10-13, 2024 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/10/2024
One of three sabers of near-identical form which have solid provenance to the North Shore (Essex County, Massachusetts), the first of one of which was observed 40 years ago in the Essex Institute; there are in addition three other sabers of this form now known in various US collections, all of which almost certainly came out of the same workshop of some highly-skilled and creative North Shore cutler, probably residing in or near either Salem or Newburyport—both of which boasted elite, volunteer dragoon units during and following the Revolutionary War. All examples have brass, stirrup hilts, each with a large hole pierced in the crossguard near the bend or turn of the knucklebow, either oval or circular in form (presumably for attaching a swordknot). This saber is the finest in quality and detailing of those that I have studied, with a superior quality blade of Solingen manufacture, triple-fullered as with all but one of the other North Shore sabers known, but also featuring etched motifs, including sun, moon, stars and cloud with lightning burst. The overall length of the saber is 37 ¼ inches, while the slightly-curved blade is 31 7/8 inches long and 1 ½ inches wide at ricasso; the original pad of scarlet broadcloth still present at the blade's junction with guard. The most distinctive feature shared by all of these sabers is the form and decoration of the backstrap that terminates into a flat, pommel cap of circular cross-section, which features diagonal gadrooning in a pattern of a flute or groove separated by two lines, then repeat. This style of gadrooning is carried through in the same manner and angle on the carved, cherrywood grips, as well as the gilded-brass ferrule encircling the grip behind the crossguard. The original, leather scabbard has a throat of brass bearing a frog button or stud of oval shape, similarly gadrooned or fluted but, but horizontally rather than diagonally and a long brass chape or drag; these brass mounts are made of sheet brass and decorated with engraved pairs of lines, the chape with scalloped edge at the join to the leather and the sheet brass body soldered to a sold brass, round tip. CONDITION: The brass mountings of saber and scabbard were originally gilded, but perhaps only 20% still remains. When acquired, the saber's knucklebow was pushed iand forward and the central portion of the blade was heavily oxidized, while the scabbard was broken in half, which most likely occurred as the result of attempting to pull the blade from the scabbard when the leather was "frozen" to the iron over a long period of time in saltwater air climate. Master swordsmith Jim Brown admirably restored the sword and scabbard to their original forms. The brass mounts are a warm yellow, with bright highlights from the gilding that remains; there are a few dings to the raised portion of the carved grip; the leather of the scabbard has some crazing and surface lost from flaking, but it is now fully stabilized; the blade is pewter grey in tone, with a uniform freckling of light pitting beginning about 6 inches above the tip and extending for 16 inches up the blade. PROVENANCE: the lifetime collection of the late Jack Weil of Marblehead, purchased as lot 276 at the John McInnis Auction of Weil's lifetime collection of early North Shore Americana, held in Amesbury on 12 June 2021. The swordbelt and engraved belt plate that follows in the next lot, directly related to this saber and scabbard and acquired at the same sale.