The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of March 29, 2024
Smallsword
c. 1730
Overall: 94.5 cm (37 3/16 in.); Blade: 77.2 cm (30 3/8 in.); Grip: 13.2 cm (5 3/16 in.); Guard: 8 cm (3 1/8 in.)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1097
Location: 210A Armor Court
Did You Know?
The decorative design of the hilt was often carried down onto the blade, which could be chased or etched with designs, and gilded or blued as seen here.Description
During the 1700s, the small-sword emerged as a light, quick weapon. Like the rapier it was carried by unarmored civilians, the noblemen of the upper classes. Over time this delicate sword became more an accessory of male attire than a weapon essential to life and death. The sword hilt, which shows even when the blade is sheathed, became the ground for elaborate decoration. These small swords thus represent the final stage in the evolution of the sword, from the edged weapons of antiquity to the elegantly refined blades of the 1700s and 1800s.- ?-1916Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art1916-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Catalogue of Arms and Armour. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], 1900. cat. no. 494 archive.orgGilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mentioned: p. 135, E111 archive.orgFliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. pp. 118, 169; cat. no. 142Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. cat. no. 194, p. 192
- Armor Court Reinstallation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
- {{cite web|title=Smallsword|url=false|author=|year=c. 1730|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.1097