Early 20th Century U. S. Navy sword -- myArmoury.com

D R Zinn

I received this sword and was told only that it belonged to the father, who served in the Navy in the Phillipines before WWI. Can anyone give me any more information on this? Anything is appreciated, but I'd particularly like to know its potential value. I'd prefer to keep it, but if it's really valuable I'll sell it.

Thomas Watt · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 5:53 pm Post subject:

My my, that one's in excellent condition!
Still has the "sword knot" also in good condition as well.
You should be able to track it via:
http://www.oldswords.com/
I would encourage you to keep it, if that's possible for you to do.

D R Zinn · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 6:29 pm Post subject:

Thank you. I was able to find out that it's a Model 1852 Naval Officer's Sword. As for value, somewhere between 125 and 3000.

Thomas Watt · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 6:52 pm Post subject:

It looks to be of excellent to "presentation" quality.
I would suspect it a lot closer to the top end of that value scale than it is to being $125... but value is always relative to what a buyer is willing to pay.
Assuming you know the name and rank of the original owner, the inclusion of historical information should assist in keeping the value up, since you have a chance to recreate some of the military record that accompanies the sword.

D R Zinn · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 9:45 pm Post subject:

Hmmm. I don't have any of that information, but I can probably get it.

Sam Barris · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 10:25 pm Post subject:

It's a standard officer's dress saber. It's not that old, as the initial model 1852 had a servicable blade, rather than a decorative one. Mine is identical to yours with the exception of the materials used in construction. I'd go ahead and keep it, if I were you. You're not going to get enough to compensate for it being an heirloom of your own bloodline.

There should be a place on the blade for a name to be engraved. Did your father do this? Also, is there a manufacturer's mark somewhere on it? The former might impact your ability to sell, the latter might give you a clue as to its history.

D R Zinn · Posted: Sun 14 Oct, 2007 10:31 pm Post subject:

Not my bloodline; not my father. I got it from the son of the original owner; he was throwing it away. Actually, he paid me to take it away, along with a mattress and boxspring, a working mower, a brand-new Ab-Lounger, and a Filipino warrior's shield, spear, and wicker backpack from the same era as the sword.

Some people.

Anyway, it was made by B. Pasquale of San Fran.

Sam Barris · Posted: Mon 15 Oct, 2007 1:10 am Post subject:

Wow. If my future children do that with my stuff after I'm gone I think I'll come back and haunt them. Eek!

It seems that the B. Pasquale Co. was in operation from 1879 to 1950. There may be more information available if there's a serial number or the previous owner's name on the blade.