Tooled leather sword scabbard mounted on a former (dummy blade) and decorated with scenes, monograms and emblems on both sides. Italian, about 1498

This leather scabbard is decorated on the obverse side with scenes of worship and the sacrifice of a ram to the Goddess of Peace (or possibly Venus), placed above an imperial eagle flanked by scrolls and cornucopias, teminating in a series of marked out but uncompleted motifs. On the reverse side there are a number of CAESAR monograms and groups of three flames, the impresa (or personal emblem) of Cesare Borgia (ca.1475-1507), born in Rome, the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI (1431-1503), and created Cardinal of Valencia in 1493. This side is fitted with three leather tubes near the top, for straps to fasten the scabbard to the baldric.

In addition to these monograms and imprese, there are two cartouches, the upper one containing two amorini placed either side of a damaged coat of arms and the lower one the Goddess of Peace (or Venus). Near the top on the obverse side, the scabbard is inscribed MATERIAM SUPERABIT OPUS (toil will tame the material).

There are splits on the reverse side which may explain why the scabbard was never completed.

Purchased by Henry Cole during his journey to Italy with Colonel Scott for £100 through W.Spence. (See Gazette Archeologique, vol XIII (1888) p.65)

This scabbard originally belonged to Cesare Borgia (1475 - 1507), the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI (1431 - 1503) and military commander during the last decades of the 15th century. It was bought by the Museum for £100 in 1869. The Source is not recorded but the sword that went with it was in the possession of the Caetani family of Rome from 1787, when they acquired it from the executors of Abbate Ferdinando Galiani (1728 - 87), until as late as 1966 (cf. Claude Blair). In a report to the Science and Art Board on the 12th February 1869, Sir Henry Cole (1808 - 82) hailed it as 'the finest piece of Art in leather known'.

Historical significance: This scabbard is emblazoned with the CESAR mongram and three-flamed emblem of Cesare Borgia (1475 - 1507), the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI (1431 - 1503) who rose through the hierarchy of the church to the position of Cardinal of Valencia and left his religious posts in 1497 to pursue the life of a warlord until his death in a skirmish in 1503. (The nude goddess being worshipped may represent either Peace or Venus, whom astrologers connected with the constellation Taurus: the bull was the emblem of the Borgia family.) Cesare waged wars on behalf of his father, and conquered much of Romagna including the city of Imola, which he used as his base. He sacked Urbino in 1498 and for a time threatened Florence. Niccolò Machiavelli (1469 - 1527) was sent to negotiate with him and found his cunning and ruthlessness sufficiently impressive to serve as his model for the ideal prince in his treatise, Il Principe, published in Florence in 1513.

Being entitled to wear a sword in peaceful social gatherings as well as battle was the mark of a nobleman. While the sword remained in its sheath or scabbard, it symbolized both the peaceful intent and the social rank of the owner rather than his prowess on the battlefield. Leather was the best material as it was waterproof if properly prepared and it would protect the blade from rust. Swords with long blades are best suited to being paraded in princely and ecclesiastical ceremonies, whereas those with shorter ones, like this example, were more suitable for combat. If the owner was a noble or military commander, a sword with a blade and scabbard, both lavishly decorated with his own personal themes, would have helped provide him with the required swagger to reinforce his status. This item remained unfinished, possibly owing to a defect in the leather.

This scabbard was made for a sword that belonged to Cesare Borgia (about 1475-1507), the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI (1431-1503). In 1498 Cesare left holy orders after five years to pursue a miltary career. The back of the scabbard is decorated with 'CESAR' monograms and clusters of flames, his personal emblem, and the front with scenes of the worship of the Goddess of Peace. The modelled leather is thought to have been first moistened, then worked on in one small area at a time, and finally hardened with specially heated tools. It was never completed, probably because of the splits that occured on the reverse side. Nevertheless, when this piece was acquired in 1869, Sir Henry Cole (1808-1882), the founding Director of the museum, justifiably hailed it as 'the finest piece of art in leather known'.

101-1869