A MEDIEVAL HAND AND A HALF SWORD

This is a cutting sword designed to be most effective against leather or partial plate armor. The hilt is of the form and proportions described by Oakeschott as group XX which but for one, are hand and a half swords of about 1320-1450. Its broad fullered slashing blade (with traces of inlaid latten makers mark) places it in with the earliest of the group. Its pommel is of Oakeschott type T4. He cites two examples of the form, one the effigy of Sir John Wyard (1411) and the figure of Pierre de Navarre in the stained glass window of Evreux Cathedral, Normandy (C.1390). The latter accords more closely with his typological model and this sword. Oakeschott offers the information but does not conclude from it that use of the type was confined to that time frame. The combination with a cutting blade in this instance clearly indicates that it was in use well before that. Further, Sir John Wyard was Lord Mayor of London in 1375 and geneonical records state that he was born about 1302. Thus, it is reasonable to assume that the sword depicted with him in death might have been purchased in the 1320s. Accordingly, a date of the mid 1300s for this sword is reasonable. Further the association with English and Norman corollaries, make an English attribution most likely. Edward III reigned 1312-77 and transformed England into the most efficient military power in Europe. In 1338 he declared himself rightful heir to the throne of France, which started the Hundred Years War. Blade length: 32 3/8" Provenance: Viktor Monetti Collection

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