Scottish Late Victorian 1828 Pattern Infantry Basket Hilt Broadsword, by Thurkle c1882-97
Straight spear-pointed blade with double central fullers and two short fullers at the ricasso. Steel pierced basket hilt, red fabric hilt liner with white leather inner and blue silk edging. Spiral grip of wood covered with shagreen bound with wire, steel ferrule and pommel cap, fringe of red silk thread. Leather scabbard with rigid band for hanging from a frog, steel throat and chape pieces, lyre shoe at the chape. No washer. Blade 32 15/16 inches (83.7cm) in length, the sword 39½ inches overall.
The blade is etched on both sides with the crown and cypher of Queen Victoria and with foliate motifs incorporating thistles. On one side at the ricasso is a brass proof slug reading ‘PROVED T’ with a small dot between the P and D, set within an etched six-pointed star. This proof slug indicates the sword was made by the company Thurkle – they used this design of slug from around 1882 until the firm was acquired by that of J. R. Gaunt & Son in 1897 which gives us a range for this sword’s production date. There is no etched maker’s or retailer’s mark.
The traditionally-styled Scottish broadsword was carried exclusively by Highland infantry regiments until 1881, when the Lowland regiments adopted Scottish dress and the broadsword along with it (with the exception of the Cameronians aka Scottish Rifles). The use of an interchangeable hilt may date back to the 1860s, but is first officially mentioned in the Dress Regulations of 1883, which authorized the Highland Light Infantry to use the basket hilt for full-dress occasions and a cross-bar hilt for all other occasions. The hilt can be changed by unscrewing the pommel nut, removing the pommel, grip and guard, then replacing the hilt with the other version (not included).
The scabbard on this example is a little unusual, the shape of its chape piece suggesting it might have been intended for a staff sergeant (officer’s scabbards typically using a ball finial), although the blade is that of an officer’s model with its etched designs and lack of any official inspection or issue marks.
The blade’s finish is excellent, it has a mirror polish with only a handful of tiny spots of patination, some polishing marks, the etching growing a little faint further up the blade and some tiny scratches and a couple of spots of frosting towards the tip. The blade’s edge is unsharpened and undamaged. The shagreen of the grip is all intact with very light handling wear, its wire binding is all present and tight with fractional movement to the minor loop nearest the ferrule. Very slight movement to the ferrule and hilt.
The, hilt, ferrule and pommel are nickel-plated with some blistering and light wear to the plating in places. One of the forward-guard bars of the basket hilt has cracked and detached where it should join to the forward quillon of the hilt, directly beside this there is a crack where one of the blade-end saltire bars joins the forward quillon – both of these breakages were probably from the same impact.
The liner is flexible with excellent colour, its blue edging has been lost in places. The silk fringe is fragile and its strands are prone to breakage – some will probably detach in transit to you. The leather of the scabbard has some denting and abrasions, the leather is quite thin and in places this wear leaves the wood core exposed. Its stitching is all intact. Some light patination to the scabbard fittings and a few scratches to the chape piece.
