Cover for a Smallsword Hilt

Sword maker Santerre French

ca. 1780

Not on view

Leather bags of this kind were intended as covers to protect the hilts of smallswords, the ubiquitous side-arm of the eighteenth-century gentleman. These covers, called "hoods" in English documents, were provided by the sword cutler, or fourbisseur, and (at least in the two known French examples) bore his name as an advertisement. Another leather cover stamped with the name of the Paris cutler Pagès is also in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum (acc. no. 1995.52). A delightful example of eighteenth-century ephemera, this cover complements the Metropolitan Museum’s extensive collection of French smallswords.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Cover for a Smallsword Hilt
Sword maker: Santerre (French, Paris, recorded 1774–92)
Date: ca. 1780
Culture: French
Medium: Leather, silk, paper, ink
Dimensions: H. 7 5/8 in. (19.4 cm); W. 5 1/4 in. (13.3 cm); Wt. 1 oz. (28.3 g)
Classification: Swords-Accessories
Credit Line: Purchase, Gift of William H. Riggs, by exchange, 2017
Object Number: 2017.221
Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

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