16th Century Dusack (Dussack, Tesak)

[shayde78]

Hello everyone,

I hope you're doing well. For those I've chatted with in the past, I've missed you and I'm glad to be back. It has been a while since I have posted (life has a tendency to keep me away from this part of the hobby, it seems).

However, I recently acquired what may now be the nicest piece in my collection.

The auction site listed this as "contemporary" and referenced "artificial aging". However, my assessment is that is is a true 16th (or early 17th) century Dusack, despite the less than expected hammer price.

I still need to take my standard measurements, and the pictures below are the seller's, but it was listed with the following dimensions: 8.5" Width (Quillions) x 4.25" D x 35.0" Length.

I think it is nearly all original. The grip wire looks a bit too perfect to be original, but if replaced, they did a wonderful job.

Michael D. Long has a very similar piece on their site (it is sold, so I hope it is OK to link to it). My piece has more a decorative pommel and finials. However, the blade is identical (albeit with different maker marks).

I would love to get your impressions of this piece. If it is indeed a reproduction (as the auction company stated), the amount of hours that went into making it are staggering because i don't see any evidence of modern techniques.

It is heavy (again, I'll post stats like weight, dimensions, point-of-balance soon), but it is well balanced in the hand.

Oh, and because it is fun to think of connections to events of the past, this bears a striking resemblance to the sword depicted in the hand of François l'Olonnais, the brutal pirate, as shown in the woodcut in Alexandre Exquemelin's 1684 account "The History of the Buccaneers of America". He was active in the 1660s and the book was published in the 1680s, so who knows if something similar would have been carried at sea. But, since this was sold as part of a "Maritime History" auction, it may have been collected as such.


(additional key words to aid search results - dusack, dusäck, dussack, dysack, tesak, tuseckn, thuseckn, disackn, dusägge, dusegge, dusegg, sinclair)

[M ELEY]

l'Olonnais! If you bring up pirates or buccaneers, you've got my attention! Absolutely amazing dussack! While I am but a novice in this particular area, the piece looks absolutely right to me. I've seen many tesacs offered on other sites that are too 'minty' and display no signs of real aging. While this piece has been polished up a bit in the past, it has the micro-pitting to the blade one wants to see. Inside the shell guard, one sees the rich dark patina that hasn't seen any polishing. While the finials are crisp, they display some worn aging and don't look recently manufactured. The blade tip has the wearing one expects to see on a sword of this age. Now I'll step aside and let the big kids come in with a clearer opinion! Hey, now that you have at least 2 of these, if you ever consider parting with one, let me know! These types were a favorite with the pirates and privateers of yore (my specialty)-

[shayde78]

Originally Posted by M ELEY

l'Olonnais! If you bring up pirates or buccaneers, you've got my attention! Absolutely amazing dussack!-

Mark!

The pirate reference was 100% to get your attention. Thank you for breaking the ice and for your initial impression. Your thoughts are much the same as mine and I'm less an expert than you so its validating.

Hope you're well,
-Rob