We found 1087811 price guide item(s) matching your search
There are 1087811 lots that match your search criteria. Subscribe now to get instant access to the full price guide service.
Click here to subscribe- List
- Grid
-
1087811 item(s)/page
A GEORGE IV NATURALISTIC PATINATED BRASS NIGHT TIMEPIECE. the frosted glass chapter ring painted with roman numerals and having blued steel hands in foliate bezel, the lever watch movement with gilt balance, engraved on the backplate Fr Dent LONDON and numbered 23659, on rectangular egg-and-dart base with foot of bracket for candle illuminant, 26cm h. ++ One hand detached, both hands with some surface rust. Some of the paint of the numerals flaking, the movement original and complete. Running for only a few seconds before stopping. In entirely unrestored condition
A GEORGE III OAK LONGCASE CLOCK. the brass break-arched dial with silvered chapter ring and matted centre, signed on a ring THO BAYLEY BURTON, with mask spandrels and lunar work to the arch, having three- train movement chiming on a carillon of six bells, in crossbanded case with swan neck pediment, turned pillars and an inlaid star to the door, 243cm H. Provenance: George Brough (1890-1969) (see p40).. ++ Case - the backboard replaced in the mid 20th c; superficial repairs and old repolishing, the movement extremely dusty with old seat board repaired with strips of aluminum
A GEORGE II JAPANNED LONGCASE CLOCK. the brass break arched dial signed on a silvered tablet James Scholefield LONDON with subsidiary seconds dial, matted centre, date aperture and STRIKE/SILENT ring to the arch, having rococo spandrels and eight day movement, the hood with swept pediment, turned pillars and brass finials, the trunk enclosed by a break arched door decorated with birds, buildings and foliage, 232cm h excluding finial . ++ In good restored condition, the dial original to the movement and with what could be the original rough oak seatboard. Recently striped and cleaned with a pair of brass cased weights and pendulum. The case restored and attractive
A GEORGE III OAK LONGCASE CLOCK. the brass dial signed on a silvered cartouche Thomas Glazebrook MANSFIELD, with silvered date sector and chapter ring and mask spandrels, having thirty hour movement with outside countwheel, the case with swept pediment, brass finials and turned pilasters, 223cm h. ++ The movement with small chip to the lower right corner of the dial plate, the movement original to the dial but with build up of dust and dirt. The seatboard old and possibly original, apparently free from having been packed but the case restored with replacements. The dial and movement possibly married to the case.
A GEORGE III MAHOGANY LONGCASE CLOCK. the brass break-arched dial with recessed chapter ring and matted centre having roman chapters and date ring, lunar work above, the arch circumscribed A BUTLER NORTHWICH, the hood with swan neck pediment and stop fluted pillars, the conforming trunk enclosed by a well figured door, on panelled base and bracket feet, 227cm h. ++ Movement associated to the dial, clean and complete, the seatboard hanging loose. Some restoration and repolishing of the case
A MAHOGANY EXTENDING DINING TABLE. the `D` shaped ends with beaded frieze, on ring turned tapering legs with brass castors, 73cm h; 122 x 182cm, early 19th c. ++ The action with evidence of old worm infestation and structural repairs, old scratches and scuff marks around the legs; repolished
A GEORGE III MAHOGANY BUREAU. the interior fitted with a door, drawers and pigeon holes above four graduated drawers, on bracket feet, 104cm h; 50 x 100cm. ++ Top with several dark ring and other marks, some let in veneer repairs. Fitted with replacement brass handles and lockplates
A FINE SILVER-MOUNTED OTTOMAN GREEK SHAMSHIR PRESENTED BY THE PACHA OF CANDIA TO CAPTAIN F.T.MICHELL R.N., DATED 1829. with curved blade double-edged towards the point and cut with two slender fullers of differing length along the back-edge, silver hilt comprising a pair of quillons with bud-shaped finials, engraved with scrolls and a bouquet of fruit, moulded back-strap engraved with the presentation inscription and date, and a pair of horn grip-scales fitted with a tear-shaped washer on each side of the pommel, in its original leather-covered wooden scabbard with large silver mounts cast and chased in relief, comprising locket, middle-band and chape each decorated with sprays of flowers, foliage, trophies and bouquets all within an elaborate series of scrollwork frames, and retaining a ring for suspension (one suspension ring missing). 75.5cm; 29 3/4in blade. Admiral Sir Frederick Thomas Michell KCB (1788-1873) was the son of Lieutenant Sampson Michell RN, a Cornishman who died an admiral in the Portuguese Navy in 1809. He was born in Exeter, entered the Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth in 1800 and joined HMS EURYDICE (24) as a Midshipman in 1803, serving in a number of ships and locations before being commissioned lieutenant on 29th May 1807. Serving in several more ships in locations from the Adriatic to Brazil, he became 1st lieutenant of HMS BOYNE (98) in March 1815. When Admiral Lord Exmouth was appointed to command a punitive expedition to Algiers in 1816, he took BOYNE`s officers with him into his flagship, HMS QUEEN CHARLOTTE (100). Before the bombardment of Algiers, late in August 1816, Exmouth appointed Michell to command the battering flotilla of 55 small vessels - principally gun, mortar, rocket and bomb ships - in the acting rank of commander and Michell was confirmed in that rank on 16th September 1816. After a decade on half-pay, Michell was appointed to command HMS RIFLEMAN (18) on 27th December 1826 and took her to the Mediterranean.. During the 1820s Greece fought her war of independence from Turkey: Britain, France and Russia were involved to maintain the balance of power and their own interests in the eastern Mediterranean. At the time, Crete was known by its Venetian name Candia and the Sultan ruled the island though a governor, or Pasha; the island`s capital, now Heraklion, was also known as Candia. It was British policy to recognise Crete as Turkish and British ships were welcomed in its harbours by the island`s governor.. The Ship`s Logs of HMS RIFLEMAN for 1829 (The National Archives; ADM 51/3377 and ADM 53/1140) show that she left Malta, bound for Crete, on 2nd March 1829, taking as passengers two Turks, Mustapha Hassan and Mustapha Ali. On 7th March, she anchored in Port Greco, a harbour on the island of Stondia - now Dia Nisida - off the north coast of Crete opposite the city of Candia. On 8th March, she sailed across the strait to Candia, put the captain, Michell, and the surgeon ashore in a yawl, `stood off and on` until the yawl returned and then, having fired a salute of 19 guns - which was returned by the harbour`s Turkish fort - sailed back to Port Greco, leaving Michell - and, presumably, the surgeon and the ship`s two Turkish passengers - in Candia. On 9th March, she returned and sent the yawl for Captain Michell, who returned at 11.30am, whereupon she left Candia harbour, returning a salute of 21 guns from the fort, and made sail for Malta, arriving there on 16th March 1829. For the remainder of 1829, HMS RIFLEMAN cruised in the Mediterranean but did not return to Crete.. It seems most likely that Michell received the sword offered here in March 1829 as a gesture of thanks from the island`s governor, perhaps for conveying the two Turks from Malta. The Turkish governor of Candia 1832-51 was the Albanian Giritli Mustafa Naili Pasha (b. 1798) who, in 1829, would have been known as plain Mustafa Naili and so may have been the `Mustapha Ali` taken aboard Michell`s ship on the orders of C.-in-C. Mediterranean for passage to Crete; he had been active in suppressing Greek insurrections on Crete in the 1820s and passage on a British sloop-of-war was probably the most sure way of returning him safely to the island.. Michell was promoted post captain on 22nd February 1830, commanded the 5th Rate HMS MAGICIENNE (24) at the siege and bombardment of Acre in 1840 and then the 5th Rate HMS INCONSTANT until 1843. In 1852 he was given command of HMS QUEEN (110) and commanded her during the Crimean War, particularly distinguishing himself at the bombardment of Sebastopol 1854-55, after which he was promoted rear admiral and created CB. Michell returned home to live in Totnes, Devon, where he was elected mayor in 1855 and 1858 and where he died. He became a vice-admiral in 1862 and an admiral in 1866, being created KCB in 1867. In addition to the sword given him by the Pasha of Candia/Crete, he received another from the Sultan, as well as a cloak with diamond clasps and several Turkish orders and decorations; as well as the insignia of a KCB, he received that of an Officer of the Legion of Honour, the Naval General Service Medal 1793-1814, with clasps Algiers and Syria and the British and Turkish medals for the Crimean War.
A GEORGIAN SILVER-MOUNTED KINDJAL, 19TH CENTURY. with broad tapering fullered blade decorated with a panel of gold koftgari scrollwork and flowers at the forte on one side (areas of wear and pitting), marine ivory grip (age cracks) retained by two rivets on nielloed silver washers each set with a turquoise, in its wooden scabbard covered with green fabric (worn), with shaped silver locket and chape each decorated with nielloed flowers on a hatched ground, the locket set with green and turquoise pastes, stamped with silver marks on the reverse, and with a single ring for suspension. 42.5cm; 16 3/4in
AN 18 BORE ALBANIAN MIQUELET-LOCK CARBINE, DATED 1115 AH (CIRCA 1703-04). with tapering sighted barrel stamped `Mafeo Francin` over the breech, steel lock of characteristic form, engraved with a brief inscription beneath the steel spring, wooden three-quarter stock, encased over the greater part of its surface with metal, the fore-end and the butt covered with brass engraved with large flowerheads and cut with an inscription behind the lock, and ivory butt incorporating a series of contrasting horn fillets, writhen steel saddle bar and a ring for a sling (the forward ring and trigger-guard missing) (worn, the ivory with age cracks), and original steel ramrod. 78.5cm; 30 7/8in barrel. The inscriptions read, in translation, `Work of `Uthman`, `Work of Ausat `Umar... Its owner and possessor `Uthman Agha`.
A NORTH EUROPEAN TWO-HAND SWORD, LATE 16TH CENTURY, PROBABLY DUTCH. with broad double-edged blade stamped with a decorative mark, cut with three short fullers of differing length and framed with wrigglework lines on each side, the forte with flattened edges for additional grip and incorporating a pair of basal lugs, waisted ricasso stamped with a bladesmith`s mark on each side, steel hilt comprising a pair of slightly down-curved flattened quillons with spatulate terminals formed with a pair of tightly scrolling finials behind and with fluted mouldings, a further pair of scrolling lugs beneath, inner and outer ring-guards each interrupted by a pair of fluted globular mouldings and filled with a further inner ring (one repaired), gadrooned bun-shaped pommel, and later leather-covered wooden grip. 120cm; 47 1/4in blade. Provenance. Sotheby Parke Bernet, Zurich, 25th November 1980, lot 28. For a sword with a cross-guard of similar design formerly in the Visser collection see J. D. Puype 1996, pp. 126-129, Cat. No. 542.
A NORTH GERMAN SWORD RAPIER, CIRCA 1560, PROBABLY BRUNSWICK. with long tapering slender blade of stiff-diamond section, stamped with the bladesmith`s mark on one side, steel hilt comprising a pair of straight flattened quillons with spatulate terminals, outer ring-guard swelling towards the centre, formed with a point top and bottom and filled with a solid plate, inner guard formed of a diagonal bar joining the quillon to a short lower arm and with a thumb loop, and square cushion-shaped pommel, and early grip of plaited wire and `Turk`s heads` (the upper Turk`s head replaced). 105.5cm; 41 1/2in blade. Provenance. The Property of a Gentleman, Sotheby & Co., 19th May 1970, lot 96. A number of military rapiers and estocs with hilts of this form are associated with the armoury of the Dukes of Brunswick, sold Sotheby`s Hanover October 2005, lot numbers 218, 220 and 221. The hilt conforms to Norman type 12.
A GERMAN LEFT-HAND DAGGER, CIRCA 1600. with robust tapering blade of diamond-section, inlaid in latten with the bladesmith`s mark, a crowned cross and orb, on one side, rectangular ricasso hollowed for the thumb, steel hilt comprising a pair of vertically recurved forward-canted flattened quillons with bud-shaped terminals, off-set side-ring interrupted by a circular moulding, associated fluted globular pommel, and later spirally-carved wooden grip (areas of pitting). 48cm; 18 7/8in . Provenance. Sotheby Parke Bernet, 14th October 1975, lot 324. Literature. Leslie Southwick, The Price Guide to Antique Edged Weapons, 1982, p. 201, no. 584.
A RAPIER IN THE ITALIAN STYLE OF CIRCA 1560, 19TH CENTURY. with tapering blade stamped with a series of decorative cross marks within a short fuller, rectangular ricasso, steel hilt cast in low relief, including a pair of horizontally recurved quillons decorated with foliage on the terminals, outer ring-guard with a central winged cherubic mask, lower ring-guard formed en suite, bifurcated inner-guard, and plummet-shaped pommel decorated with cherub masks and acanthus, and the grip with plaited steel wire and `Turk`s heads`. 103.5cm; 40 3/4in blade. The hilt is based on a sword associated with the region of Emilia, preserved in the Museo Civico, Bologna, inv. no. MC32.
AN ITALIAN BROADSWORD, LATE 16th/EARLY 17TH CENTURY. with tapering blade of diamond-section, cut with a short narrow fuller incised with a running wolf and a cross and orb mark on each side, steel `crab-claw` hilt of characteristic form including a pair of drooping quillons and a further pair of curved inner bars all chiselled with groups of vertical lines, outer ring-guard fitted with a later pierced sprung-in plate, faceted globular pommel, and the grip with a later plaited wire binding (areas of light pitting). 73cm; 28 3/4in blade
A RARE GERMAN SWEPT-HILT RAPIER WITH CHISELLED STEEL HILT, CIRCA 1610. with tapering blade of flattened-hexagonal section, signed `Hortuno Aguir en Toledo` between a series of pierced slots and circles within a pair of slender fullers on each face, tapering ricasso stamped with the bladesmith`s mark on each side (rubbed, the blade with areas of pitting) and cut with cross hatching on the edges, steel hilt of rounded bars comprising a pair of straight swelling quillons (the right quillon expertly replaced), écusson, outer ring-guard joined at the base to a pair of arms, lower ring-guard, knuckle-guard joined to the ring-guard by a diagonal bar, trifurcated inner-guard, and barrel-shaped pommel, the principal bars and the pommel chiselled with an arrangement of nude figures in differing attitudes amidst scrolling foliage (areas of pitting, rubbed), and the grip bound with plaited wire and `Turk`s heads`. 98.5cm; 38 7/8in blade. Provenance. Eric Valentine, sold Christie, Manson & Woods, 25th February 1981, lot 55.. Literature. Eric Valentine, Rapiers, Arms & Armour Press 1968, no. 15. Hortuno de Aguirre is recorded in Toledo in the early 17th Century. A sword with a blade and hilt of related form is preserved in the Wallace Collection (inv. no. A589). For a discussion of this group see A. V. B. Norman 1986 pp. 136-7. Another blade stamped with this mark is preserved in the Armeria Reale, Madrid (inv. no. G81).
A COMPOSITE RAPIER IN THE MANNER OF CLAUDE SEVIGNY OF TOURS, LATE 16TH CENTURY AND LATER. with tapering blade of flattened-hexagonal section, stamped `Sahagun` between a series of decorative marks within a short fuller on each side, tapering ricasso, finely pierced and chiselled steel hilt formed of flattened bars incorporating openwork panels filled with figures, including down-curved quillon, knuckle-guard, shaped quillon-block pierced with scrolls and a mask on each side, a pair of arms, outer ring-guard joining the knuckle-guard to one of the arms, lower ring-guard, later plain trifurcated inner-guard, the principal bars decorated on the upper and lower edges with a pierced chain pattern, solid pommel decorated with an oval filled with the figures of Venus and Mars on the front and back respectively, and the grip bound with plaited brass wire and `Turk`s heads`. 100cm; 39 3/8in blade. Provenance. Sotheby & Co. 9th October 1972, lot 371. R. Ewart Oakeshott. For a discussion of Claude Sevigny of Tours see G. F. Laking 1920, pp. 296-299.
A PAPPENHEIMER RAPIER, CIRCA 1630 AND LATER. with tapering blade of flattened-hexagonal section, stamped with a series of decorative marks within a pair of short fullers on each side at the forte, symmetrical steel hilt formed of flattened rounded bars each interrupted by a central moulding, comprising a pair of quillons with flattened bud-shaped terminals, outer ring-guard (one terminal detached at the rear), lower ring-guard fitted with a sprung-in plate pierced with a series of stars, quatrefoils and circles, a pair of arms joined to the upper ring-guard by a pair of arms, knuckle-guard with recurved finial en suite with the quillons, decorated throughout with a later chiselled scale pattern enriched with silver pellets (small losses), ovoid pommel decorated en suite with the bars, and the later wire-bound grip with `Turk`s heads`. 100.3cm; 39 1/2in blade. Provenance. Sotheby Parke Bernet, 22nd April 1980, lot 126.
AN ITALIAN MULTI-RING RAPIER, CIRCA 1630-40. with associated tapering blade, rectangular ricasso stamped with the bladesmith`s name `Franc..` and `C.Mastio` on the respective sides, symmetrical steel hilt of slender faceted bars, including a pair of vertically recurved quillons, deep guard of six concentric rings, fitted at the base with a figure-of-eight shaped plate pierced and chiselled with a green man mask on each side, knuckle-guard joined to the guard by an additional bar and fluted barrel-shaped pommel (probably associated), and later wire-bound grip with `Turk`s heads`. 94.7cm; 37 1/4in blade. Provenance. Sotheby Parke Bernet, 22nd April 1980, lot 124.
AN ITALIAN SWEPT-HILT RAPIER, CIRCA 1630. with associated blade of diamond section, tapering ricasso signed `Marson` one side, symmetrical steel hilt of slender moulded bars, comprising vertically recurved quillons with globular terminals (one repaired), three outer ring-guards of diminishing size and each interrupted by a central moulding, fitted with a scalloped double shell-guard, knuckle-guard joined to the upper ring-guard by a diagonal bar, and associated tapering barrel-shaped pommel (the grip replaced). 119.5cm; 47in blade. Provenance. Sotheby & Co., London, 12th October 1970, lot 192.
A GERMAN PIKEMAN`S SWORD, SECOND QUARTER OF THE 17TH CENTURY. with tapering double-edged blade, rectangular ricasso formed with blunted edges and incised with decorative lines along the edge, stamped with the bladesmith`s mark, the letter `W` on one side, steel hilt of flattened rounded bars, comprising a pair of vertically recurved quillons with fish-tail terminals, diagonal ring-guard joining the quillons to a pair of lower arms, the latter formed with a pair of additional up-turned bars with terminals en suite with the quillons and a further ring at the base, trifurcated inner-guard, and flattened pommel of fish-tail form pierced with a hole on one side, and the grip with its original binding of plaited wire and `Turk`s heads`. 92cm; 36 1/4in blade. Provenance. A Collection formed by a Maréchal de France, formed in the course of his service as a Governor in Germany during the Napoleonic Wars, sold Sotheby Parke Bernet, Zurich, 25th November 1980, lot 108.. Six swords with hilts of this form are recorded in the former Town Arsenal, Vienna and a further seventy-six at Schloss Ambras. See Schallaburg 1977, p. 155, no. 670 and A.V.B.Norman 1980, p. 88.
A NORTH EUROPEAN RIDING SWORD, LATE 17TH CENTURY. with broad double-edged blade cut with three short fullers, the central fuller stamped `Andria Ferara` and with a running wolf mark ahead on each side, symmetrical steel hilt of flattened rounded bars, comprising ring-guards each interrupted by a central moulding and fitted with a sprung-in plate pierced with series of holes enclosed within a strapwork panel, knuckle-guard formed en suite and joined to the ring-guards by a scrolling bar front and back, globular pommel chiselled with leafy ornament, and later grip. 84.5cm; 33 1/4in blade
A RIDING SWORD, SECOND QUARTER OF THE 17TH CENTURY, PROBABLY GERMAN. with associated broad tapering blade cut with a short fuller stamped with the bladesmith`s name `Sebastian Hernie` on each side and `MDX`, finely chiselled steel hilt comprising a pair of vertically recurved quillons with bud-shaped terminals decorated with volutes and scrolls of foliage, a pair of blunt écusson, outer ring-guard interrupted by a globular moulding en suite with the quillons, small down-curved shell-guard decorated with leafy ornament, thumb loop, and matching globular pommel, and later grip bound with plaited wire and `Turk`s heads` (areas of pitting). 87.5cm; 34 1/2in blade. Provenance. Sotheby`s 15th May 1984, lot 88. A sword with a hilt of related form including a vestigial shell-guard is preserved in the Solingen Blade Museum. See H. R. Uhlemann 1968 pp. 88-9.
A VENETIAN SCHIAVONA, MID-17TH CENTURY. with broad double-edged blade cut with a near full-length fuller on each side and retaining traces of engraving at the forte, steel basket-hilt of characteristic form comprising a trellis pattern of flattened bars (one bar cracked, one early repair), slightly down-curved quillon with globular terminal, shield-shaped pommel formed with a central hemispherical moulding on each side, joined to the guard by a steel ring, and original wire-bound leather-covered wooden grip (small losses). 79.8cm; 31 3/8in blade. Provenance. L. F. McCardle, Sheffield Park, sold 25th May 1971, lot 835
A NORTH EUROPEAN BROADSWORD, SECOND QUARTER OF THE 17TH CENTURY. with broad flat blade decorated with a gibbet and an inscription on one side, steel hilt of circular bars, comprising inner and outer ring guards of differing size each filled with a pierced sprung-in plate chiselled with scrolling mulberry fruit and foliage issuant from an urn, drawn-up at the front to an additional bar interrupted by a globular moulding, short down-curved quillon with globular terminal, knuckle-guard formed en suite and joined to the frontal guard by a diagonal bar, the inside with a thumb loop, compressed spherical pommel, and wire-bound grip with `Turk`s heads`. 83.2cm; 32 3/4in blade. Provenance. Sotheby`s 23rd April 1985, lot 139. The inscription reads `Der Kav Fied As Fail Wirt Und Find Eias Verlorn Wirt Der Stirwt Edas Er Kranckh Wiert` which reads in translation `If you find this sword and do not return it to its owner you will become ill.`
A FINE NORTH EUROPEAN DISH-HILT RAPIER, MID-17TH CENTURY, PROBABLY ENGLISH. with tapering slender blade stamped with the bladesmith`s name ` Ortiz Tesche` and `IHN Solingen`, within a short fuller on the respective faces, symmetrical steel hilt chiselled in low relief, comprising shallow dish-guard decorated on the outside with a circular arrangement of branches issuant with mulberries on a ground of tightly scrolling foliage, the border divided into quarters by four grotesque masks, straight quillons with globular terminals, quillon-block chiselled with a broad acanthus leaf on each side, outer ring-guard interrupted by a central moulding, knuckle-guard interrupted by a globular central moulding en suite with the quillons, globular pommel chiselled throughout with elaborate patterns of foliage against a punched and striated ground, and spirally-fluted grip with later copper wire binding and `Turk`s heads`, and remaining in fine condition throughout. 109cm; 43in blade. Provenance. Henry Griffith Keasby, sold The American Art Association, inc. New York, 5-6th December 1924, lot 249.. Eric Valentine, sold Christie, Manson & Woods, 25th February 1981, lot 57.. The hilt of this rapier is of notably high quality compared to other English examples of this type. Another is preserved in the Royal Armouries, Leeds. See A. R. Dufty 1974, p. 20, plate 30b. For a discussion of this group see C. Blair 1974, pp. 106-7.
AN ENGLISH DISH-HILT RAPIER, MID-17TH CENTURY. with associated blade of flattened oval section, cut with a pair of short fullers and stamped with a bladesmith`s mark on one side (the tip with one small chip), steel hilt comprising shallow cup-guard pierced and chiselled with scrolling foliage inhabited by winged masks and stylised figures supporting portrait ovals, inner and outer ring-guards joined to the cup-guard by a pair of short arms, a pair of short quillons with tightly curled chiselled spatulate terminals, knuckle-guard, and globular pommel (tang lengthened, pommel screw replaced), all chiselled en suite with the guard, and later grip bound with plaited copper wire. 99.4cm; 39 1/8in blade
A FINE ENGLISH DUELLING RAPIER, CIRCA 1640. with slender blade of flattened-diamond section, short rectangular ricasso, symmetrical blackened steel hilt of slender rectangular bars, comprising cup-guard formed of a ring-guard interrupted by a globular moulding and filled with a sprung-in plate pierced with a delicate arrangement of quatrefoils, a pair of straight quillons with drooping terminals turned in at the base and joining the base of the arms, an additional pair of arms joining the cup-guard to the quillon-block, the latter fluted, tall ovoid fluted pommel, and the grip with an early binding of plaited wire and `Turk`s heads`. 95.2cm; 37 1/2in blade. The looped quillons are extremely unusual and were probably intended for catching the opponent`s blade. The hilt conforms to Norman type 97, for this type and a discussion of other related examples to the present sword see A. V. B. Norman 1980, p. 172.
A CUP-HILT RAPIER, CIRCA 1630, PROBABLY ENGLISH. with slender blade of hollow-diamond section, rectangular ricasso retaining an early leather sleeve also enclosing the forte, symmetrical steel hilt comprising very large cup-guard formed of four sprung-in plates finely pierced with stars and circles, inner and outer ring-guards each with a central moulding, a pair of straight faceted quillons swelling towards the tips, tall fluted ovoid pommel (the button with one small chip, the hilt with areas of light pitting), and the grip bound with plaited wire and `Turk`s heads`, probably the original. 122cm; 42in blade. A rapier of very similar type formerly in the Eric Valentine collection was exhibited Art of the Armourer, 1963, cat. no. 107.
A COMPOSITE NORTH EUROPEAN ARMOUR, FIRST HALF OF THE 17TH CENTURY AND LATER. comprising cuirassier helmet with two-piece fluted skull pierced by a ring finial on a star-shaped washer (incomplete), pivoting peak fitted with later visor and a single neck lame front and rear, gorget formed of a single deep plate front and rear, breastplate decorated with pairs of incised lines and carrying a pair of tassets of seven lames, backplate fitted with a culet of five lames, a pair of full arm-defences including large pauldrons and a pair of fingered gauntlets, a pair of full leg-defences including articulated cuisses with winged poleyns and articulated sabatons, on a wooden stand
THE PROPERTY OF A EUROPEAN COLLECTOR. A VERY FINE GERMAN MANUFACTURER`S MODEL CANNON BY ALFRED KRUPP PRESENTED TO KING GEORGE I OF GREECE, DATED 1864. with tapering multi-stage steel barrel swelling at the muzzle, cast with raised astragal and reinforcing bands, engraved with the Greek crowned royal cypher between entwined oak and olive branches on the first reinforce, chiselled on top of the base-ring with the abbreviated word for `Arsenal` in Greek cyrillic, the date and with a gold-damascened cartouche between, and with a further cyrillic inscription beneath, globular cascable, and a pair of trunnions inscribed `1/5` on on the left and `C/K.1748` on the right, on its original steel-mounted mahogany carriage, with steel-shod spoked cambered wheels, fitted with an ammunition case on each side, the bed with elevating screw, signed `K.O.` and with the date 1858 on the trail eye bracket (cap-squares expertly replaced) and with its limber en suite with the carriage, carrying a further pair of fitted ammunition boxes, and with accurately detailed steel fittings throughout. 49.5cm; 19 1/2in. barrel The Krupp family arrived in Essen in 1587 and are recorded thirty one years later making over one thousand barrels a year at the start of the thirty years war. The family continued to manufacture gun barrels of a high quality and rose to international fame in the 19th and 20th Centuries. During the 19th Century a very large proportion of `die Firma`s` income was generated from other areas of the steel industry including the manufacture of steel tyres for trains. A considerable number of these were exported to the United States and praised for their superior quality. The income generated from this was able to subsidise the cannon founding business that was an obsessive passion for Alfred Krupp (1812-87).. George I of Greece ascended to the throne on 29th October 1863. The unrest of the years preceding this together with the handing over of the Ionian Islands by the British in June 1864 gave a favourable start to his reign. For an account of the Krupp family see W. Manchester, 1964.
A .700 CALIBRE CONTINENTAL FLINTLOCK REGULATION PISTOL, CIRCA 1820. with tapering barrel, rounded lock retaining traces of the date and stamped with a mark, `DN` crowned, figured walnut full stock, and brass mounts including butt-cap with steel lanyard ring. 38.7cm; 15 1/4in
A RARE FRENCH FLINTLOCK BLUNDERBUSS PISTOL BY DUMAREST A PARIS, CIRCA 1820. with tapering barrel swelling to a strongly formed elliptical muzzle, fitted with a spring bayonet beneath, and signed beneath the breech, border-engraved box-lock action finely engraved with camels on the left and a bull on the right, engraved with thunder bolts on the top-jaw, sliding thumb-piece safety-catch also locking the steel, figured walnut butt (chipped behind the lock on one side) carved with a band of foliage around the pommel, cut with a panel of fine chequering enriched with silver nails all within a beadwork frame above a gold swag on each side, inlaid in gold and silver with flowers and foliage over the spine of the butt (losses), engraved steel trigger-guard locking the bayonet, engraved steel butt-cap with lanyard ring, and vacant silver shield-shaped escutcheon (the steel parts patinated throughout). 27.3cm; 10 3/4in

-
1087811 item(s)/page