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Backsword: HEN.M.295-1933

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Titles

Backsword

Maker(s)

Production: Unknown

Entities

Categories

Description

Highland basket hilt of Glasgow form. Pommel formed as a truncated cone, with a very flat button and a deep collar like a shallower cone below. Grip of oval section, spirally grooved and covered in fishskin. A strand of twisted wire runs through the groove, finished at top and bottom with Turks' heads of brown wire. Back-edged blade with a shallow, narrow fuller inside the back-edge, with a very short matching one on the true edge, extending below the quardo. In the fuller on each side the engraved inscription 'X ANDRIA X FARARA X rather unevenly applied.

Notes

History note: Fenton ticket

Legal notes

J.S. Henderson Bequest

Measurements and weight

Length: 97.1 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1933-03-16) by Henderson, James Stewart

Dating

18th Century
Circa 1750 CE - 1775 CE

Components of the work

Turks' Heads composed of wire ( brown)
Grip composed of fish skin
Sword composed of steel
Hilt Length 17.7 cm
Blade Length 82.4 cm
Blade At Hilt Width 3.3 cm

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: P.B.111
  • Type: Tag

Identification numbers

Accession number: HEN.M.295-1933
Primary reference Number: 19120
Old object number: PB 111

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Monday 29 April 2024

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Backsword" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/19120 Accessed: 2025-12-05 13:42:41

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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/19120 |title=Backsword |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-05 13:42:41|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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