Glaive of the Bodyguard of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, later Emperor Ferdinand II (1578–1637)
Not on view
The long, sharply pointed knife-like blade has a convex cutting edge and has a short back edge near the point. The rectangular socket was formerly mounted with two side straps (now cut off). Each side of the blade is etched with a shield bearing the arms of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria (1578–1637), later Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II, surrounded by a collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece and surmounted by an archducal bonnet, above which is the monogram F. The back and base of the blade are followed by an etched line, and at the base of the cutting edge is a tiny flower. The shaft is modern.
This weapon, called Kuse in German (derived from French couteau, knife), was a traditional arm carried by the bodyguards at the imperial Hapsburg court. The present example bears the monogram of Archduke Ferdinand and his coat of arms as it appeared prior to his coronation as King of Bohemia in 1617. The presence of the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece indicates that this glaive may date from 1596, the year in which the archduke was received into the Order.
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