Sword hilt for ID

[Hotspur]

Originally Posted by Atlantia

The beak of that example is more akin to the carved ivory Dutch example and both are actually eagle like.
The beak on Nando's example is more like an Ibis or even a parrot.
I'm not saying it couldn't be an eagle. But if it is an eagle then the person who cast it didn't know what an eagle looks like.

I have enough of a picture libray that I can match a good many in fair comparison. The one that has been mentioned as Dutch and then mention of kastane in this thread prompts one from my unsorted folder.

I was really a hold out about the influences of world travels reaching Europe and the kastane bridge particularly until seeing a magnificent portrait of an Englishman in battle of the English civil war with a truly serious kastane hilt.

So anyway, this one for the other hanger of the thread I will refrain from posting all the Shriner's scimitars variations I have come across There are a number of full brass hilts of eagle and bird form associated with the Americas and my picture files (many thousands) for those of North America (ie USA) can be broken down pretty easily between the bird and eagle types.

It is the bird head pommels of generally English patterns that the Lattimer collection fill the pages along with the true crested eagles. As important in that collection and presentation are the pages of Roman and knighlty form pommels.

I found Jim's classification of toucan quite apt and had thought that immediately myself before he wrote it (strange minds do sometimes think alike). My own classifications of three major players in American Eaglehead Pommels is broken down to Larry, Curly and Moe of the three stooges (Osborn, Bolton and Ketand) so I can appreciate whatever one may call an item but the bird in question beginning this thread is none of those.

Cheers

GC

Cheers

GC