Info Favorites Register Log in
myArmoury.com Discussion Forums

Forum index Memberlist Usergroups Spotlight Topics Search
Forum Index > Historical Arms Talk > Interesting basket-hilt Reply to topic
This is a standard topic  
Author Message
Nathan Robinson
myArmoury Admin


myArmoury Admin

PostPosted: Thu 05 Jan, 2006 1:56 pm    Post subject: Interesting basket-hilt         Reply with quote

While browsing through the Inventory Catalog of the Higgins Armory Museum, I came across an interesting basket-hilt:


HAM 1979.04.06

This is described by Jeffrey L. Forgeng of the Higgins as:



Origin: Germany (perhaps Solingen)
Artist: Blade signed "Jacop Brach"
Date: 1575-1650
Materials: Steel; iron; brass; wood; modern restorations
Weight: 2 pounds, 8 ounces
Dimensions: 115 cm O.L. x 14.5 cm W

Description:
Narrow, fullered thrusting blade with long ricasso. Openwork, symmetrical basket hilt of iron bars. All are flattish, with oval swellings having dentated edges, at the bars' mid-length. The crossguards are flat, turned slightly towards the blade, with rather lozenge terminals. Restored wire-wrapped wooden grip with Turk's heads at the ends. The globose pommel with button is writhen in a manner resembling a turban.



Now if you really look at this, you can see that the construction is very similar to that of the schiavona in that the bars all initiate from and terminate at the cross-guard.

The bars are also pierced, similarly to this basket-hilt, dated circa 1570:


Click photo for full-sized version

I had used the above basket, amongst others, as inspiration for the one I had EB Erickson create for me:


Click photos for full-sized versions

I was excited to add yet another "inspiring" basket-hilt to my database. As I find each of these, I realize that the style was perhaps not as uncommon as I previously had thought.


Further info on the Higgins sword from Jeffrey L. Forgeng:

Marks:
"JACOP BRACH" on an inlaid brass strip on both faces of the blade near the hilt. An indistinct stamped mark is found above this.

Comments:
This is part of a preserved group of five swords, plus two detached hilts. In addition to ours there are those in an American private collection, the collection of Mr. H.L. Visser (Wassenaar, Netherlands), Kost Castle near Prague, castle museum Pypesteyn (Netherlands), and the two hilts in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Label text:
During the sixteenth century, the increased use of weapons such as pistols, and changes in swordfighting techniques and the swords themselves meant that hand armor was often not worn. This required sword hilts to become the hand defense, evolving into a complex network of bars. This particular example--one of only seven recorded--is a rare form of "basket hilt."

Exhibitions:
"A Double-Edged Weapon: The Sword as Icon and Artifact," in-house exhibit, 20 January - 5 November 2000. Also venue at National Ornamental Metal Museum (Memphis, TN), 25 February - 8 July 2001.

Bibliography:
Jan-Piet Puype, "The Visser Collection: Arms of the Netherlands in the Collection of H.L. Visser" (Zwolle: Waanders, 1996), 2 vols., no. 543 (HV-833).

.:. Visit my Collection Gallery :: View my Reading List :: View my Wish List :: See Pages I Like :: Find me on Facebook .:.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
Steve Grisetti




Location: Orlando metro area, Florida, USA
Joined: 01 Mar 2004
Likes: 9 pages
Reading list: 28 books

Posts: 1,812

PostPosted: Thu 05 Jan, 2006 5:13 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Interesting and attractive hilt construction, Nathan. And thanks for the catalog link!
"...dismount thy tuck, be yare in thy preparation, for thy assailant is quick, skilful, and deadly."
- Sir Toby Belch
View user's profile Send private message
Thomas Hoogendam




Location: The Netherlands
Joined: 20 Jun 2004
Reading list: 8 books

Posts: 252

PostPosted: Fri 06 Jan, 2006 3:34 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Very attractive, both the original and the modern sword that inspired by it.

Thanks for the pictures and the info Nathan!
View user's profile Send private message
Dominic Dellavalle




Location: NJ
Joined: 24 Jan 2005

Posts: 54

PostPosted: Fri 06 Jan, 2006 7:53 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Gorgeous looking sword there. You guys are going to be my undoing, I just know it. When I first came to this site I was just a longsword fan. The more and more examples I see of these basket-hilts the more and more I want one.

And while we're at it why not a nice rapier?

Oh and a nice claymore too! Laughing Out Loud

Glad to see that link is getting some use too. I burned it to CD last night and began the arduous task of printing it out to bind and put with my other books.

Nathan, I was thinking since that PDF file has such a large amount of information across so many cultures/era's would it be worthwhile to add it to the link page? Just a thought.


~Dominic
View user's profile Send private message
Gordon Frye




Location: Kingston, Washington
Joined: 20 Apr 2004
Reading list: 15 books

Spotlight topics: 2
Posts: 1,191

PostPosted: Fri 06 Jan, 2006 9:56 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Nathan;

How cool! I share your love of early basket-hilts, and it's always fun to find new examples to compare to the others, and to try to figure out the geneology of them all.

Thanks for posting that! Hopefully soon we'll have some pictures of "Nathan's New Basket Hilt from E B Erickson"! Big Grin

Cheers,

Gordon

"After God, we owe our victory to our Horses"
Gonsalo Jimenez de Quesada
http://www.renaissancesoldier.com/
http://historypundit.blogspot.com/
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website Yahoo Messenger


Display posts from previous:   
Forum Index > Historical Arms Talk > Interesting basket-hilt
Page 1 of 1 Reply to topic
All times are GMT - 8 Hours

View previous topic :: View next topic
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum






All contents © Copyright 2003-2024 myArmoury.com — All rights reserved
Discussion forums powered by phpBB © The phpBB Group
Switch to the Basic Low-bandwidth Version of the forum