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Swept Hilt Rapier

ca. 1600 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
England (made)

Steel hilt, damascened in gold and encrusted with chiselled silver. The blade is stamped with spurious marks 'CAINO' (Milanese bladesmith) and 'TO' in a shield surmounted by a crown (Toledo mark).

Object details

Category
Arms & Armour
Object type
Swept hilt rapier
Materials and techniques
Steel, damascened in gold and encrusted with chiselled silver.
Brief description
Swept hilt rapier, the blade stamped with spurious Italian and Spanish marks, English, ca. 1600.
Physical description
Steel hilt, damascened in gold and encrusted with chiselled silver. The blade is stamped with spurious marks 'CAINO' (Milanese bladesmith) and 'TO' in a shield surmounted by a crown (Toledo mark).
Dimensions
  • Length: 124.8cm
  • Width: 22.5cm
  • Depth: 12.4cm
  • Blade length: 106.7cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • stamped with spurious marks 'CAINO' (The blade. Caino a Milanese bladesmith)
  • stamped 'TO' in a shield surmounted by a crown (The blade, spurious mark for Toledo)
Gallery label
Treasures of the Royal Courts: Tudors, Stuarts and the Russian Tsars label text:

Rapier
About 1600

A rapier was an essential part of the lavish dress of the Elizabethan male courtier. It was both an item of jewellery and a weapon of self-defence. This rapier has a 'swept' hilt designed to protect an unarmoured civilian hand. It is similar to that shown in the portrait of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex.

England
Steel, the hilt damascened in gold and encrusted with chiselled silver
Stamped with marks 'caino' and 'to' in a shield (for Toledo)
Bequeathed to the Victoria and Albert Museum by Francis Mallett
V&A M.51-1947
Credit line
F Mallett Bequest
Object history
Historical significance: This is one of the finest English rapiers to have survived
Historical context
It can be identified as English on the evidence of its decoration which relates closely to that found in swords with hilts of English form.

Source: J F Hayward, Swords and Daggers, London, HMSO, 1963, p.5-6
Bibliographic references
  • Hayward, J.F. Swords and Daggers, London, HMSO, 1963, cat. 16
  • Patterson, Angus, Fashion and Armour in Renaissance Europe: Proud Lookes and Brave Attire, V&A Publications, London, 2009, p. 62, ill. pl. 56
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
M.51-1947

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Record createdMarch 23, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O97278/swept-hilt-rapier-unknown/
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