#67 • European Sword of Justice/ Headsman Sword Ca. 1600

Part of Arms, Armor and The Early West (live auction by Lewis & Grant Auctions)

High bid $6,500.00

Status: Sold

34" double-edged blade with blunted tip, short fuller at forte with characteristic hilt in heavy brass, the wooden grip overlaid with leather. The blade engraved on each side with the Latin inscriptions "SOLI DEO GLORIA" (to god alone the glory) and PRO FIDE ET PATRIA (for faith and country). Though normally associated with German-speaking countries, these swords were also used in Poland, with several examples in the National Museum in Krakow, and blades of this form are also found in Hungarian hilts as well, one example residing in the Wallace Collection in London, England. **The blade surface with light to moderate pitting in areas, losses to figurative engraving ahead of the inscription panels, brass with patina, leather intact. In a contemporary scabbard.** $2,500-$5,000