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Smallsword: HEN.M.251-1933

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Current Location: Gallery 31 (Armoury)

Maker(s)

Blade maker: Unknown (Hilt)
Hilt maker: Unknown (Blade)

Entities

Categories

Description

Small sword, silver hilt formerly gilt. Paris charge mark. Discharge mark of warrior's head.

Notes

History note: Mr James Stewart Henderson of 'Abbotsford', Downs Road, St Helen's Park, Hastings, Sussex

Legal notes

J.S. Henderson Bequest

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1933-03-16) by Henderson, James Stewart

Dating

18th Century, Early
Production date: circa AD 1720

Note

The blued and gilt blade is inscribed on one side: ‘De la/Manufacture/de la marque/ a l’Extra-fin/a Solingen’ and ‘EXT/FIN’. On the other side: ‘Cassaignard/mt/fourbisseur/Du roy/Et maître/arquebusier/Pres la Bourse/a Nantes’. The silver hilt has chiselled decoration with traces of original gilding and the grip is bound with silver wire and ribbon. Cassaignard was a sword maker in Nantes, with a shop close to the local Stock Exchange, at the sign 'A la Victoire'.

Components of the work

Hilt composed of silver
Sword composed of steel

Identification numbers

Accession number: HEN.M.251-1933
Primary reference Number: 19012

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Tuesday 26 March 2024

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Smallsword" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/19012 Accessed: 2025-12-06 03:11:47

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{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/19012 |title=Smallsword |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-06 03:11:47|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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