2039 Dagger
2039) AN EXCEPTIONAL SILVER ENCRUSTED EARLY ITALIAN LEFT HAND DAGGER, CIRCA 1580, WITH ORIGINAL GRIP:
Introduction: A left-hand dagger was essential to the fencing strategy. Left-hand daggers are used in conjunction with the rapier to maximize a combatant’s swordsmanship. The left-hand dagger was used to parry, block, trap, and redirect the opponent’s sword to create an opening for the rapier to administer the ‚” coup de grace”. However, a good swordsman could also reverse the roles and use the rapier to set up the left-hand dagger for the finishing stroke.
Description: Constructed with a stiff, double-edged blade with a strong medial ridge and reinforced tip. A wide, flat ricasso sits just above the guard, giving the user a place to loop their thumb securely over the hilt for better parrying leverage. The straight crossguard (quillons) terminates in decorative, slightly flared ends. A central, oval quillon block is adorned with detailed silver floral wirework. The grip is tightly wrapped with dark, silver wire. A spherical or “wheel” shaped pommel with a prominent finial button. The surface is divided into symmetrical panels housing inlaid silver motifs of stylized plants or leaves en suite.
Condition: Very good with no active corrosion, some signs of past pitting.
Provenance: A fine European collection.
Approximate Length: 12.75 inches.
Comparable: Garcia. The Collector’s Course on Medieval Arms and Armor. 2021, page 259.
Discussion: Because the rapier and left-hand dagger were civilian implements of defense with no armor involved, the sword could be much lighter and wielded more effectively with one hand. Left-hand daggers were usually made with three different hilt types:
1)Cruciform shape: The quillons were horizontal, stout, long, and sometimes swelled at the tips.
2) Bent downward: In an effort to trap the opponent’s blade with a simple twist of the wrist, most left-hand daggers had downward-turned quillons. Downward-turned quillons also redirected the opponent’s blade to create an opening to attack.
(3) Opposite bend: In some less common examples, one quillon was turned downward to trap the opponent’s blade, and the other quillon bent in the opposite direction (facing upward) to function as a knuckle guard and protect the swordsman’s hand.
A protective ring or shell at the quillon block served the purpose of protecting the hand from a redirected blade that could have slid down and disabled the swordsman’s hand. The blade tapers to the tip, most with a medial ridge for added strength. Most blades were double-edged and had a ricasso.
Some blades were pierced with decorative patterns or cut with intricate indentations (see page 328‚ #15-A in my book). These features were not just for decoration; they served the same purpose as a fuller on a sword. They made the dagger lighter without sacrificing the blade’s rigidity or strength. Contrary to what the Victorians thought, the piercings on the blade were not for poison but simply for decoration. Most rapiers’ blade decoration mirrored the decoration of the left-hand dagger blade.
Conclusion: A true elegant and highly collectible early left-hand dagger at a price most collectors can afford. Thick, heavy-duty construction, excellent condition. Priced to sell way under true value!!!*
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