Controversial Hunting Sword – European with Moorish influence?

[Cathey]

I was asked by Jim McDougall to post this hunting sword on this forum.

Date Circa: 1800
Nationality: Cordoba, Argentina or Spain
Over Length: 62.4 cm
Blade length: 46.5 cm
Blade widest point: 4.5 cm

Marks, etc: Blade engraved decoration to 2/3rds and the name SAN RoqE. Decoration includes dear, standing man with hat, double headed eagle and ½ man with hat as well as decorative foliage.

Description: HUNTING SWORD Hispanic origin circa 1800 (Cordoba, Argentina). Ornate silver hilt includes a delicately carved bone/horn dog at the top of the grip connected to the lower end of grip by a silver chain. Matching silver work to leather scabbard with frog, end fitting missing. All silver fitting very tight and well made excellent quality. Double-headed eagle is included among the complicated decoration deeply chiselled into the blade. The name SAN RoqE [San Roque] is the Spanish form of that of the French saint known in English and French as “Saint Roch”. He was very popular, and many churches and religious institutions were dedicated to, or named after him.

General Remarks
Claude Blair provided the information re SAN RoqE and suggested its origin to be Hispanic. Every collector who has looked at this item has come up with a different origin, the only thing we can all agree on is that it is a hunting sword. The general workmanship is very fine and typical of European hunting swords, however the design and look is more Spanish with a distinctly Moorish flavour.

Cheers Cathey