Sword identification

[JesseS]

Can anyone help identify the maker and approximate date of this sword?

The sword was given to US Army Brig. Gen. Robert Swartwout, probably during the War of 1812, by US Navy Commodore Stephen Decatur. The sword had been taken by Decatur as a token of surrender from a Barbary pirate captain whose ship was captured by Decatur during the war with Tripoli in 1804.

Gen. Swartwout unfortunately changed the hilt so that he could use the sword as his personal dress sword. The sword passed down through the Swartwout family and I inherited it.

The sword is engraved with the "Spanish motto" "No Me Satues Sin Rason" and "No Me Enbaines Sin Honor." The engraving is nearly identical in appearance to that on the sword of Jeff D, whose sword is shown in the following thread:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...=spanish+motto

The difference in the engraving is that, while Jeff's sword has a "sun and moon" motif attributed to Solingen, mine has a different motif that I can't describe in words, so I'll let the photos do the talking.

If anyone can identify the maker from the engraved motif, I would be most grateful. It's shown in the last photo below, and is the same on both sides of the sword.

[Battara]

It would be helpful to see pictures of the sword.

[JesseS]

Originally Posted by Battara

It would be helpful to see pictures of the sword.

Pics are up now, sorry for the delay.

[fernando]

Thi is most certainly an European blade, Jesse.
Let's move this thread to the European Forum, to see if members there come around with their comments.

[fernando]

Until better opinion, i would bet on the Solingen origin, such as used for export.
The symbols (Solingen Orb type) are unusual, although recognisable by some.
It looks like they are connected to something more defined than the usual generic stuff.
May i put it upright ?
... and maybe with time you can get a better picture ?

.

[fernando]

Have you visited this thread, Jesse ?

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=5453

[JesseS]

Originally Posted by fernando

Have you visited this thread, Jesse ?

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=5453

Thanks, Fernando. Do you think my "orb and cross" is a Solingen mark, then? It seems similar to this group of Solingen marks:




PS...sorry for photo quality. That's the best I can do. The markings are worn and quite faint.

[M ELEY]

The history of the piece makes sense. The Barbary Corsairs were 'just across the way' from the Iberian Peninsula, with trade routes and potential captures from Spanish ships. The blade is from a broadsword (?), so we can assume the original hilt was probably that of a bilbo (more likely) or perhaps cuphilt, as in the types seen in Peterson's and Brinkerhoff's books.
Mark

[JesseS]

Originally Posted by M ELEY

The history of the piece makes sense. The Barbary Corsairs were 'just across the way' from the Iberian Peninsula, with trade routes and potential captures from Spanish ships. The blade is from a broadsword (?), so we can assume the original hilt was probably that of a bilbo (more likely) or perhaps cuphilt, as in the types seen in Peterson's and Brinkerhoff's books.
Mark

Thanks, Mark. I've been researching Decatur's actions in the First Barbary War. In late 1803 he was involved in the capture of the Tripolitan warship "Mastico" and its captain Mustapha Rais who surrendered, and I would like to imagine that this is Mustapha Rais' sword surrendered to Decatur. Decatur later sailed the captured "Mastico" (renamed "Intrepid") into Tripoli in disguise and destroyed the captured "Philadelphia" in a daring raid that made him famous.

Then in August 1804 he boarded and captured two Tripolitan gunboats in hand-to-hand combat. On one of the boats he fought with the captain, who nearly killed him, but while they wrestled, Decatur was able to reach his pistol in his pocket and cock and fire it, killing his opponent. Possible that the sword was taken in one of these encounters as well.

[M ELEY]

Hello Jesse,
You have a very interesting sword and would add that you should keep all correspondence with the original owners, any records they have proving provenance, etc. Stephen Decatur was a true American hero whose exploits at Tripoli captured the attention of the whole world (it was the start of the fall of the Barbary Corsairs and even Lord Horatio Nelson made comments on Decatur's bravery).

The thread you had a link to was a Scottish baskethilt with a Spanish-type blade. The problem with trying to identify a sword sans hilt can be very confusing. Spanish and Portuguese swords of the 17th-18th c. had the classic saying, but that motto was often inscribed on imported German-made blades for the Spanish market. Spanish swords were often diamond-shaped/six-sided, but again, Solingen often reproduced this pattern for export. Your blade seems to my inept eyes to be a true Spanish type, based on decoration/inscription, but still might be Germanic in origin. In any case, it is extremely rare to see that motto on anything other than Spanish types (bilbos, cuphilts), such as the Scottish sword in that thread. Being that yours comes from Morocco or similar port and bares the Spanish blade, I surmise that the hilt was a bilbo or cuphilt. I have in my collection a very similar bladed bilbo (the inscription barely legible and from an earlier sword), the hilt of classic 'colonial Spanish' form, with primitive braised pas d'ane, kidney-shaped guard from another sword, wood hilt with crude wire wrap, all 18th c.

As a pirate enthusiast, I can't tell you how much this sword means to fellow collectors, but provenance is everything! Keep your receipts and correspondence! The hilt found on the piece does appear to be the typical early to mid-19th c. dress style hilt.
Mark

[JesseS]

Thanks, Mark. I have a letter from one of General Swartwout's descendants documenting the sword's provenance, plus a letter written to Gen Swartwout by one of his associates from Gibraltar in 1815 mentioning the imminent arrival of Decatur's squadron in Gibraltar. I will definitely keep these safe!

[Jim McDougall]

Mark is of course spot on in his assessment and observations here, and we have always had a passion for these 'Spanish motto' blades. As he notes, this blade was probably in a Spanish 'bilbo' which was a rapier like heavy arming sword used in the Spanish colonies in the 18th into the 19th centuries.
These Bilbo type swords were quite common in Spain's colonies on Mexico's east coast, Cuba, Florida and other ports of call in the "Spanish Main' . Naturally the Moroccan littoral was included in these locations, so not at all surprising to see this very nice blade in this context.

These 'Spanish Motto' blades were indeed made in Solingen for Spain to export to her colonies, and entire shipments of these blades have been found en masse. The 'flourish' incorporating the cross and orb would be part of the application added in Solingen, but these blades be ascribed to any particular maker. I believe they were contractual and likely completed by several makes and inscribers.

As Mark has well put.....provenance is everything..and this example is outstanding!!!

[M ELEY]

Hello Cap'n Jim! Great to hear from you! I should have known that this one would catch your attention! What do you think of the history? Amazing pirate piece!

JesseS is probably mad at me, as I said I'd post a pic of one of mine. Still waiting for the wife (who's computer-savvy) to post the pics I took with her phone. In any case, I'll try again in the next couple of days! Just to warn you, Jesse, as I stated, the motto on mine is all but rubbed off and almost impossible to read. I used to have another sword (now sold) with a solid marking.

[Jim McDougall]

Ahoy there Mark!
Thank you so much for the response, and always the kind words. This one indeed is directly in line with all the research and discussion we have shared for many years on the mystery of these 'Spanish motto' blades. I will never forget the first time I ever encountered it, in a purely serendipity instance in Southern California in the 70s. I saw a sabre in a boutique window along Coast Highway in Laguna. It was serving as a display holder for costume jewelry!!!
I nabbed it for a paltry amount, and though not knowing much on it in those days, had pretty much all the same notions on it's motto that have been so heavily perpetuated in so many cases. Regrettably I traded it away in later years, and later learning the history of these I have wistful memories of this wonderful Spanish colonial sabre.

As you note, these blades were prevalent through the 'Spanish Main' in the later years of piracy, which remained long after the 'golden age', in fact never has really ended. Sorry we lost Jesse on this one, time does get away

All the best,
Jim

[M ELEY]

Hello Jim and Happy Easter!

Too bad you don't still have that sword you found with the motto. I'm one to talk, though, as I traded mine away as well! If you remember, mine was the German-made Solingen sword with Spanish motto, classic Spanish 6-sided broadsword blade with brass cast lion hilt. I traded it for a naval officer's lion pommel hanger-

I think Jesse's sword is a very important piece of pirate history and he's a lucky gent to have it! If you ever wish to part with it, Jesse...

OK, finally, here is the Spanish colonial bilbo I mentioned with similar blade, marking almost completely undiscernable, with similar decorations. As Jim pointed out, the Spanish trade routes passed directly through the so called Barbary States, so a captured Spanish colonial piece may have had a bilbo type hilt, cup hilt, etc.

[M ELEY]

More pics. Note the crude pas d'ane, rounded bars brazed together in primitive loop pattern and crude wire wrap over wood core.