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Historic commentswelcome to antique militaria!
I have been a military antiques dealer (based at Grays Antique Market in London's West End until Christmas 2008) for over 45 years: antique swords, weapons, guns, uniforms, helmets, equipment, medals, belt buckles, bayonets and almost all other items of general militaria. British, German, European and worldwide items... I have provided all kinds of arms and armour and military collectibles to both private customers, trade and museum clientele all around the world!
featured antique military items
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1st Empire naval officer's (possibly a surgeon) sword, Year 12 model - French
This is a senior administrative officer's sword, probably either a surgeon or an apothecary, viz the twin-headed serpent on the guard. The little dolphin head at the end of the knuckle bow by the pommel indicates the naval branch of service. The mounts are ormolu and the grip is ebony.
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Royal Navy fighting dirk - British
This is likely to have been made towards the end of the American Revolutionary War (Peace of Paris, 1783) or during the early part of the Napoleonic Wars (starting 1793). This would have been carried by an RN officer or HEIC naval officer, and this example is interesting in having a particularly long (approx 26") blade.
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Hunting hanger with tortoiseshell grip - German
The hilt could be Dutch or French, the use of tortoiseshell having been introduced to Europe in the late 17th century, probably through Dutch colonial connections. The mid 18th-century German blade (26" long) would have replaced an earlier, shorter, straight, double-edged blade (broken?), probably to enable the weapon's use as a naval hanger.
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Heavy Cavalry officer's dress sword, 1796 pattern - British
This is an Austrian pattern, which was adopted by the British army in 1796 as a dress sword for Heavy Cavalry general officers and militia units. It would have been used throughout the Peninsula War and at Waterloo and beyond until about 1820 or so.
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Whitworth bayonet marked for 2nd/60th - British
This is the bayonet for the .451 muzzle-loading Whitworth rifle. In extensive trials these were issued in 1863-67 to infantry units, including various guards and rifle regiments. Some 8,000 bayonets were produced, the general scale of issue being some 68 rifles and bayonets per regiment. The 2nd Battalion 60th were in the Maori Wars 1860-70.
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Prussian general's epaulettes, Hohenzollern family provenance - German
This is a pair of full general's epaulettes for wear on the field grey tunic, introduced in 1907. These formerly belonged to General Wilhelm von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Prince von Hohenzollern (1864-1927). The twin stars and triple braided bullion cords indicate his rank. The black fleck on the silver bullion indicates Prussian service.
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a little history on my antiques interest
I am now retired and this site is kept up for posterity. I have been a collector of military antiques since the age of 12, starting with bayonets and moving gradually on to swords, finally entering the broader military antique dealing arena in about 1970. At that stage, I rapidly started to learn about antique English pistols and revolvers.
In about 1980, I broadened my dealing coverage from mainstream militaria to include English campaign medals. The arrival of powerful auction houses in this field drove me back to my original interest in general militaria (swords, bayonets, dirks, guns, pistols, etc).
However, I still maintain a lively interest in all military objects, especially the rare and exotic, eg Imperial Russian and Austrian.
Throughout my dealing career, I have built up my personal collection of antique military prints and drawings and a substantial selection of early military photographs up to 1945, principally German and English. To aid both my dealing and collecting, I have a huge library covering all military aspects of antiques going back to the Middle Ages, and many aspects of antiques in general, especially early English silver.
