Victrix thank you very much! and for posting this interesting link to the Dalmatian connection with the French.
Keith, thanks for reminding me of the remarkable work by Cathey, in her inimitable thorough style of research! The work by Nathan Robinson ("My Armoury") has also long stood as excellent resource expanding on Oakeshott's study.
Its great to see this grouping of hilt forms of schiavona which as you note seems to place this particular hilt on mine of that period late 17th c.
it seems to heighten the potential for heirloom hilts being used with more contemporary blades in later periods.
Victrix as noted, this blade was not necessarily to a Sicilian 'proper' but to someone in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which comprised a large part of Southern Italy which included Naples as well as Sicily. Thank you for the note on the varying blades on schiavona, and I like the idea that this blade is on a much older hilt (thanks again Keith for that heads up).
These hilts evolved apparently from Germanic swords of 14th-16th c. in the 'cats head' pommel, as well as the crossguard systems known in Hungarian swords of that period. Note: the catshead pommel (as seen in my example and characteristic to most schiavona) is termed KATZENKOPFKNAUF (really a mouthful!) .
This brings to mind the KATZENBALGER swords of Germanic mercenaries
having to do with 'cat fight' in simile.
The schiavona type hilt with the lattice type basket hilt appears to have evolved adding to these simpler guards and interestingly have had some similar elements to some of the Spanish type features such as downturned quillons etc (as on 'nimcha').
Apparently the schiavona term loosely has to do with Slavonic mercenaries using these swords in Spain as well as of course in Venice as bodyguards to the Doge. The Slavonic term refers to these Slavonic mercenaries with 'schiavona' being the feminine as with calling swords by female gender.
Yikes Keith, you were married to a Sicilian girl? beautiful BUT deadly!
Thank you for the input guys! Ive clearly become more intrigued by this and researching what I can find so with your input (thanks again Udo for that detailed excerpt) I feel like Im getting somewhere.
Interesting that Ive always been fascinated with Spanish colonial swords, and here an 'Italian' sword turns out to be in effect connected to Spain of the colonial period in Americas. Ferdinand IV was the son of Charles III of Spain, thus ruled as a cadet branch of the Bourbon dynasty!
Sounds complicated, no? but must get this straight for pop quiz!