In good condition, a An XIII Waterloo French Cuirassier / Heavy Cavalry Trooper’s Sword
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We can be almost certain this sword is a British war trophy, a battlefield pick up. Why? 1) The point has been field converted from its original hatchet point to spear point (to make more effective at piercing / thrusting), only performed by regiments, first done just before Waterloo. 2) No post 1815 poinçons (inspection stamps). 3) Unmodified hilt / guard (in 1816, the French revised the guard design to incorporate a forward facing front edge to increase hand protection, and converted most An XIII’s to 1816m’s). 4) The correct pre-1816 number of grip turns, 12 (in 1816, the French increased these to 16+). 5) The sword has been in the UK for a long time (it is not a collector’s / tourist’s purchase in France). 5) The rack / serial numbers on the hilt (300) and scabbard (500) are different, indicating the sword was dropped in battle and married up by a victor with a suitable scabbard later (if it had remained in French service, they would have corrected this). 6) The blades from An XIII’s can be found in much later models, as the French reused them (they would not have let this sword be).
Blade dated September 1813 with correct poinçons for Bick and Lobstein, the worn poinçon for Krantz just visible with a magnifying glass.
The almighty 37 3/4 inch twin fullered blade is in good condition and firm in the hilt. The solid heavy brass guard / hilt is also good, some age (brass can be cleaned bright but maybe not a good idea as the rest of the sword has age). The original leather grip is good, a small wear through patch or two; the twisted grip wire bindings are good but not original in our opinion. The period chemically browned heavy steel scabbard is now more brown courtesy of some patina (inert rust), but good. The sword sheathes and draws well.
A very good example of this iconic deadly Waterloo French heavy cavalry sword, just was £? (too late, now sold). Please quote item reference AH05. Further / full sized images available upon request. Box 1641 122x15x14 (2.970)
