British 1803 pattern flank officer sword?

[Bryce]

Thanks mate,
37mm puts it in the range of normal sized swords. If it started out life this short I would have expected it to be a bit narrower than this. Doesn't tell us when the shortening was carried out though.
Cheers,
Bryce

[cel7]

Originally Posted by Bryce

Thanks mate,
37mm puts it in the range of normal sized swords. If it started out life this short I would have expected it to be a bit narrower than this. Doesn't tell us when the shortening was carried out though.
Cheers,
Bryce

I think you have a good point here Bryce! I compared it with two other short sabers that I have that have roughly the same length of blade.
The width and thickness of the blade at the base of the ricasso are less with the other two. Also the point of balance of the saber we discuss here is way to close to the hilt compared with the two others of which I'm sure have the original length. 7 cm that is, compared to 10 cm for the Briquette and 12,5 for the one on the left hand site.

[toaster5sqn]

The engraving on the blade seems to say officers sword more than police hanger. Also the shot of it in comparison with the other two hangers shows that if it has been shortened then its original curve was quite extreme. Wildly varying amounts of curvature were another feature of the pre 1803 sabres.

Robert

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by toaster5sqn

The engraving on the blade seems to say officers sword more than police hanger. Also the shot of it in comparison with the other two hangers shows that if it has been shortened then its original curve was quite extreme. Wildly varying amounts of curvature were another feature of the pre 1803 sabres.

Robert

Thats an important observation Robert, engraving would indeed signify an officers sword.....the customs and police hangers were munitions grade.