Posts: 11,553 Location: San Francisco
Thu 21 Apr, 2011 10:10 pm
I want to see the final piece! Do what you can to share this with us, please!
You already know this, but I'll post it for the public to know as well. This sword is based on an original that is one that I've wanted to see made for many years.
It's a much earlier style (circa 1590-1600) than many basket-hilts that we see made on the modern market and so that's one thing that attracts me to it. The fact that it's most often labeled as "English" is another factor that distinguishes it from the much more commonly-created Scottish basket-hilts we see in the modern market.
I'm pleased to see that ElJay's extensive experience with antiques made him able to decisively determine that the pommel on the antique is not the original, but is instead a replacement. The pommel shape that sits on your sword is a much more appropriate representation of what was likely originally present on the hilt!
Modern consumers often forget the importance of having that experience with antiques and this is just one example of how such experience guides the interpretive work required to replicate a piece.
Attachment: 15.9 KB

English basket-hilt, circa 1590