Both are late 18th C., on account of the vestigial pas d'ane. The shape of the knuckle guard on the upper sword suggests is older than the lower.
The figure in question seems to be a winged woman, or a long haired man, probably depicting an angel.
I'm currently auctioning a similar sword, with an identical faceted olive pommel, and with identical scalloped guard as the upper one. This type of triangular-cut blade was known as "hollow".
All of Europe followed the french smallsword designs, so these ones can be english , french, german, dutch etc...
In fact, a very similar sword appears on "Swords and Blades Of the American Revolution", by George C. Neumann, p. 136 #224.
|