Sword with 'famous' blade

Jim McDougall · 23rd September 2013, 12:47 AM

Really beautiful sword Nando! and as you have well surmised, it is of course not a true 'Ayala' blade, but one of the Solingen products of the 18th century, and I am inclined to think these were earlier in the century than the well known 'Spanish motto' dragoon blades.

Tomas Ayala was a late 16th century Toledo smith whose name, according to Mann (Wallace Coll. 1962, pp.288-9) was one of the frequently used names as rather a 'brand' well into 18th c. I believe he ceased c. 1625.

Your note of the curious mark over the 'I' (which is apparantly the German spelling used in place of the 'Y') is a well considered thought. As you know my obsession is with markings, and I am wondering if perhaps this vdery subtle mark could have other meaning than you suggest. A similar mark (looks like a bird in flight) is known in some of the esoterica as a kind of signature associated with the order of friars of Brothers of St. John.
If I recall this or similar order was situated in or near Solingen quite early, and there were numerous symbols etc. used by Spanish adopted in some German contexts.
While of course not necessarily anything supportable at this point, it seems clearly a deliberately placed, yet unobtrusive mark and would be interesting to look more into.

The other mark seems a sort of 'serpentine' symbol as well as the parallel undulating lines at the forte, which seems we discussed some time ago as a recurring symbol on a number of renaissance period blades.

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23rd September 2013, 12:47 AM	#2
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,295	Really beautiful sword Nando! and as you have well surmised, it is of course not a true 'Ayala' blade, but one of the Solingen products of the 18th century, and I am inclined to think these were earlier in the century than the well known 'Spanish motto' dragoon blades. Tomas Ayala was a late 16th century Toledo smith whose name, according to Mann (Wallace Coll. 1962, pp.288-9) was one of the frequently used names as rather a 'brand' well into 18th c. I believe he ceased c. 1625. Your note of the curious mark over the 'I' (which is apparantly the German spelling used in place of the 'Y') is a well considered thought. As you know my obsession is with markings, and I am wondering if perhaps this vdery subtle mark could have other meaning than you suggest. A similar mark (looks like a bird in flight) is known in some of the esoterica as a kind of signature associated with the order of friars of Brothers of St. John. If I recall this or similar order was situated in or near Solingen quite early, and there were numerous symbols etc. used by Spanish adopted in some German contexts. While of course not necessarily anything supportable at this point, it seems clearly a deliberately placed, yet unobtrusive mark and would be interesting to look more into. The other mark seems a sort of 'serpentine' symbol as well as the parallel undulating lines at the forte, which seems we discussed some time ago as a recurring symbol on a number of renaissance period blades.