FRENCH MODEL 1850 FOOT OFFICERS SWORD

William V. · 9th May 2013, 04:06 PM

Hello Chris,

in fact the father never used the beehive as his marking. The son Ferdinand Hoppe (who took over the business) got it in 1847 by marriage to a Julia Köller, I suppose as part of the dowry. Since then the marking was used by S. Hoppe and Son(s).
And regarding the epee itself: I think it was personal fashion to wear his own weapon rather then a regimentally issued one. I'm not sure (I collect fencing and dueling weapons, so the military is not my area) but I think that an officer wanted to show his wealth when carrying a personal weapon belonging to him. And of course he could take it home as a souvenir of his time in the military....

So far for today

All the best

William

9th May 2013, 04:06 PM	#8
William V. Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 33	Hello Chris, in fact the father never used the beehive as his marking. The son Ferdinand Hoppe (who took over the business) got it in 1847 by marriage to a Julia Köller, I suppose as part of the dowry. Since then the marking was used by S. Hoppe and Son(s). And regarding the epee itself: I think it was personal fashion to wear his own weapon rather then a regimentally issued one. I'm not sure (I collect fencing and dueling weapons, so the military is not my area) but I think that an officer wanted to show his wealth when carrying a personal weapon belonging to him. And of course he could take it home as a souvenir of his time in the military.... So far for today All the best William