Hey all,

I mentioned in another thread that I had a mystery Hussar sword(I believe), so here are some shots of it. Any insight would be appreciated. Some measurements are 25 1/2 inch blade, with the full sword length being 31 inches total, not counting the little tip on the top pommel edge. That would mean the hilt is about 5 1/2 inches deep. It has sharkskin over wood, which has seen better days:

Thanks,
Shane

P.S. I forgot to mention it has a thin, brass washer instead of a leather one between the blade and hilt.

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Glen A. Cleeton, you said you loved Hussar swords in the other thread. Do you have any idea about this one? I wasn't sure if you saw this thread or not, and I wanted your opinion.

Thanks,
Shane

Hi Shane,

My thoughts are that it is has been apart and together, with or without marrying sword parts with a random blade. The protrusion off the pommel really doesn't belong (maybe simply added to aid remounting), as does not the brass washer. Interesting but unidentifiable by me. Pull it apart and there is probably an extension of the tang brazed or welded on.

Swords of this type and size tend to be for foot use. I'm not sure why we might consider it a hussar hilt, aisde from the langets. Hussars being cavalrymen and not infantry, artillery or naval. Still we may over-categorize at times.

I have a hard time with Imageshack on dial-up and maybe my using OPERA as a browser but I can probably download those and perk up the resolution and detail a bit. It looks like a quite thin metal that was used for the hilt and could point to early American construction. Is the metal brass of the hilt or iron/steel?

Some 1788 types I have adopted over time

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These are hilts I would maybe generalize as hussar type hilts, rather than the dove head type backstrap hilts.

Here is my somewhat larger and earlier sabre of the same general hilt type (1750ish)

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So, it may be folly in the end to define hussar hilts by any one characteristic and maybe I'd better regard what the swords were destined to be used for.

Cheers

GC

Oh, ok, I can see the thingie on the butt end now by enlarging. still seems weird to me and something that was added in refitting the hilt. Is that protrusion thing a brass cap that might be threaded?

It looks like a bit short for a hussar saber. It could be an early 19th or late 18th century infantry sword. Any markings on the ricasso?

You can browse this site for some nice examples:
http://blankwaffen.at/bnPortal/fotos.php?s=list&oid=20

Hey Glen,

Thanks for the feedback! You said you had problems with the imageshack pics, so I'm going to try and edit them so they'll display full-size. I took some more pics of the hilt up-close and the focus is better on most, just so you can have more to base an assessment on.

I thought the metal was brass due to the color beneath the patina, but I guess it could be gilded steel. Where the knuckle-guard goes below the pommel area, it's not attached and can flex in and out, giving the impression it may be more "springy" like steel, rather than brass.

I've never been into taking the old swords apart to inspect the tang, and with the odd protruding stud and how its made, I fear I may just damage it.

By the way, I love all the shots of your true Hussar swords. I just called mine one due to some of the similarities I noticed. I have no idea exactly what it is. Maybe you're right in that it was pieced together. Hmm...

Shane

P.S. The brass tip is not threaded, but appears to be made of multiple rings of brass or brass layers.

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Thanks for the additional pictures. If the hilt parts are iron or steel, a magnet will stick.

I honestly don't know what to make of it, especially the blade decoration. The depth of the blade etch and the coverage seems almost one of a decorative sword overall and probably not as old as I might have first thought.

Where did you happen to come across it and how was the sword described to you?

Cheers

GC

Sorry, Ozsvath, I didn't catch your post earlier. I can't find any markings on the ricasso or elsewhere. I'll check out that website. :cool:

Glen, I did the magnet test and it doesn't attach, so it must be brass. I also checked a U.S. Model 1902 sword that I have, which I thought was gilded steel, but it doesn't magnetize at all, so I guess it's brass, as well, which I think is rarer on that model.

The "hussar" sword was sold as a completely unknown sword on ebay. I just liked the style and look of it so much I bid on it and won it fairly cheap. I'm enjoying the challenge of trying to tract down exactly what it is, but I have no definite answers yet. If it's a pieced to together sword, so be it, but I'm not even sure how the brass tip thing was made and how I'd get it apart. I was hoping the design of the pattern in the blade fuller may be a clue, but I'm still at a loss.

I'm fairly new to all this, so thanks for the feedback,
Shane

Looks pretty authentic to me, fakers rarely use stingray skin for grip cover. This type was widely spread across Europe it could be Austro-Hungarian, Polish, French, German or Russian. It's hard to tell the exact type, but try to find some clues, any markings on the blade or coat of arms hidden in the decoration.

Thanks, I'll look closer and see what I can find tomorrow and then post again. Thanks again for the help.

Shane