K
This beautiful little saber has an interesting story. Long ago, it was in the collection of Charles G. Stone of Warrenton, Virginia. Later, it was included in the collection in The Corcoran Museum in Washington, DC. It has been in this collection for over thirty years. It was given a manufactured date of 1785 for unknown reasons. Strangely, this old hand made saber is made of stainless steel!! The story goes that the ore from which this saber was made came from a county in New Jersey. There, people knew that items made from the ore would not rust. That was long before stainless steel was used. References state that ancient warriors made swords from meteors and the metal would not rust. Today, stainless steel contains 7% Nickel and 10 to 18 percent chromium. This saber never rusts! The picture on the next page does not show that the color is silver. The hilt must be brass plated with gold. The saber was hand made. The blade is not straight or of uniform thickness. It has the characteristics of the artillery sabers used in the War of 1812. The saber is not marked but it is American manufactured. The hilt has a scalloped knuckle-bow with a back-strap, and it may be made of brass. The bone grips are horizontally fluted and have a ferrule. The curved saber is not engraved and there are no manufacturer’s markings. The scabbard is leather with a brass frog on the throat. It has brass carrying rings and a tip. The picture below is included to show how the fuller was roughly ground into the blade by hand. Also, the pure color of the metal is evident. Obviously, the ore from that county in New Jersey contained a considerable amount of chromium!
More Pictures
Return To: