The Sword of John Hampden(?)

[shayde78]

Hello all,

I am wondering if anyone knows anything about the a sword in the Royal Collection (Queen's Guard Chamber, Windsor Castle), listed as RCIN 62994. (see listing here: https://www.rct.uk/collection/62994/rapier)

Per the above linked site, this sword is claimed to have "belonged to John Hampden (1594-1643), one of the leaders of the parliamentary opposition to Charles I".

The hilt is attributed to being designed by sculptor Benvenuto Cellini.

This sword is also depicted in Fig 37 of Gardner's "Armour in England From the Earliest Times to the Reign of James the First"

I am curious if anyone knows anything about this sword, the sculptor, and the accuracy of attributing this to a date in the first half of the 1600s. A few months ago, I posted a sword in my collection with a hilt that has some similarities in decorative technique (although not the same motif) and it was generally thought that such chiseling of steel would not have been seen on something from the 16th or 17th centuries.

I know museums and armories can get dates wrong, so I figured I'd come to the actual experts here

As always, thank you for your expertise,
-Rob