Scottish Basket-hilted Broadsword, 1st Quarter 18th C

Description

Featuring hand-forged iron hilt of round-section bars, with inserted flat panels pierced with hearts and circular cutouts, with engraved line borders; the rear section with inserted S-shaped bar and stylized fleur de lis/heart decoration on each side. Forward quillon with forward guard of looping round-section bars; reverse quillon with broad scrolled wrist guard. Fluted low-domed pommel with button and shagreen-covered grip with twisted iron wire and ferrules top and bottom. Straight double-edged 35” blade of flattened diamond section with full-length central fuller; the long lens-section ricasso with engraved crown on each side and stamped with a mark showing crowned crossed swords. Blade shows lamination and staining, with one edge nearly covered with nicks from blade strikes. The hilt has an old coating of varnish. Though not verified, it is often thought that the S-shaped bar in the hilt is associated with the Jacobites, supporters of the Stuart line. With the number of edge nicks in the blade, it would seem likely that this sword saw considerable action. The period of manufacture of this sword puts it at a time when it could have been used in the 1715 rebellion, as well as the uprising of 1745, which ended the Stuart cause at the Battle of Culloden on 16 April, 1746. After this time, the broadsword was banned in the Highlands and many families left Scotland during the Highland clearances that followed. These migrants to North America would have a profound lasting effect on the culture of both the United States and Canada. Similar examples illustrated and described in Mazansky’s “British Basket-hilted Swords”, type E6a. Overall length 40 1/2”.