Iron hilt of Norman type 105 (1645-80) with spatulate quillons and compressed pommel chiseled with a female portrait, perhaps Henrietta, each side. The guard is chiseled and encrusted with silver both sides. One side with a central chiseled medallion, the other with a silver medallion inset. Silver wire wrapped grip. 29 ¼” diamond section blade with deep fuller at the forte inscribed IOHANIS/ESCHE, unrecorded or perhaps Johannis Tesche, as these were stamped by illiterate workmen. There is considerable information on swords of this type, some of it misleading. These were town swords, worn for personal protection by gentlemen schooled in fencing. The proportions are similar to the hangers carried by men of lower status and in skilled hands, these swords would be a match for any encountered in the streets. During the period, silver encrustation of sword hilts was a style trend in England. The chiseled portrait as well, compares in style and workmanship to those found on mortuary swords of the English Civil Wars (1642-51). The political atmosphere of that period made it imperative that men of the noble class be armed in public. The use of an imported German blade is typical.