This is a Model 1850 Foot Officers sword from the Civil War. The sword measures 35 1/2" overall, with a 29 1/2" blade that measures 1 1/8" wide at the hilt. The blade has a stopped fuller that runs 20 3/4" long. The edge has a few small nicks here and there, nothing major. This is the second Foot Officer's sword to come into the shop this week. This one has oral history of coming out of an old barn in Middle Tennessee near the Tennessee/Kentucky border. There are no makers marks visible on the ricasso. The blade has turned black and has light pitting scattered along the entire length of the blade. The washer is missing from this one. The brass hilt has a deep dark aged appearance, with only the pommel cap having some brass showing. The pommel cap is secure on the tang, the peen looks to have never been disturbed. The wooden grip is wrapped in leather and has a single strand of copper wire. The leather has shrunk with age and is now a form fit to the wooden grip. There are a couple of small spots along the bottom of the grip where leather has worn off. The wooden grip is a cracked on the upper left side that runs from the hilt all the way to the pommel cap. There is a small crack at the bottom left side of the grip at the hilt approximately 1" long. The hilt and grip are as tight to the blade as the day it was made. While there is no written documentation to go along with this sword I believe it to be Confederate used. All that time spent in a barn would explain the absence of a scabbard. This sword would have used a leather scabbard, which was probably destroyed by insects and rodents long along. Here's an opportunity to pick up a Confederate used sword without spending a fortune!

Item # AA1016

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