Important Paper on Cinquedea associated with Duke of Ferrara and Lucrezia Borgia

[Jim McDougall]

I recently received the English translation of the important paper "A Cinquedea with the Arms of Alfonso 1st d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Lucrezia Borgia" by Dominique Buttin (attached).


Dominique Buttin, the grandson of Charles Buttin, one of the foremost early collectors and writers on historic and ethnographic weapons, wrote this paper over 20 years ago after extensive and incredibly detailed research.

Its subject is the remarkable cinquedea sword which has certain connections to the Italian noble who was married to Lucrezia Borgia, the subject of notorious scandal and the image of the femme fatale immortalized in the 1833 screen play by Victor Hugo.

The sword was part of Charles Buttin's collection, and was one of his most daunting researches which remained incomplete after his death. Dominique inherited the sword and strove for years to resolve the questions which surrounded this sword, resulting in this remarkable article, which perfectly describes the kind of forensic investigation with which serious students of arms will well appreciate.

The photo of Charles Buttin in his study at Rumilly, France 1903 is a classic image well known from the 1933 reference on ethnographic arms of his collection......and the cinquedea seen on his desk.

The next image of Duke of Ferrara, Alfonso d'Este (1476-1534) who was married to Lucrezia Borgia until her death in 1519.

Whether this cinquedea is in fact the possession of this important Italian noble from ceremonial gift at his marraige to Lucrezia, or possibly used in the stage performance of the Hugo play at LaScala in 1834 remains the question, but the research is compelling, leaving conclusions to the readers.

[cornelistromp]

It's been a long time since I've had the opportunity to read such a great and well-founded study, breathtaking, super, my compliments.

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by cornelistromp

It's been a long time since I've had the opportunity to read such a great and well-founded study, breathtaking, super, my compliments.

Thank you so much Jasper! That means a great deal from you, and I will pass on your most kind compliments to Dominique.

All the very best,
Jim

[cornelistromp]

Hi Jim, thank you and of course my best wishes for 2026.
It's certainly a very good article.