Belle rapière à branches, en fer ciselé à la manière d'un disciple de l'école de Munich, Allemagne vers 1600-10. A fine German rapier with chiselled swept-hilt, in the manner of a follower of the Munich school of iron chiselling, circa 1600-1610. With slender tapering blade of flattened diamond section changing to flattened hexagonal section at the forte, both sides with the bladesmith's signature "PETER WIRS BERCH" stamped within each of the three narrow fullers cut at the forte, struck on the ricasso with the mark of Peter Wirsberg, a post-horn in a pearled circle, and the forte and the ricasso each with punched and engraved borders closed by a cross mark, iron hilt formed of lenticular bars chiselled with acanthus leaves at the stems and tips, including a pair of arms carrying an outer-ring at the base, two concentric bars progressively larger and each canted towards the pommel, the upper bar linked to the middle of the knuckle-guard by a diagonal branch, inner-guard of three rounded bars converging to meet the knuckle-guard, the outer-guard chiselled with small subjects within running designs of scrolls entwined with foliage and in low relief throughout, including grotesque masks, human, mythical and zoomorphic halffigures, a series of cartouches framing figures, predominantly cavalry in combat, and all finished bright against a re-gilded ground, the pommel en suite, finely chiselled with bands of demon masks and mythical beasts about the top and bottom, and enclosing a frieze of demons set in architectural niches and strapwork roundels filled with the figures of St.George at the front and Marcus Curtius at the rear, and the grip bound with later patterned silver and copper wire between silver "Turk's heads". L. overall: 116 cm - L. blade: 99.3 cm - W.: 23.5 cm The chiselled decoration on the hilt draws on details derived from the themes of the so-called Fontainebleau school of design, notably from the published designs of the French virtuoso medallist, goldsmith, engraver and designer Etienne Delaune (1518/19-1583). Delaune's designs were strongly influential in the works of the school of iron chisellers established under the patronage of the Ducal court in Munich by the beginning of the 17th century. For a brief account of the Masters of the Munich school and their works see NORMAN, A.V.B., The Rapier and Small-Sword, 1460- 1820, London, 1980, pp. 335 and 374. For a detailed survey see STOCKLEIN, Hans, Meister des Eisenschnittes, 1922. Peter Wirsberg was a prolific craftsman to judge from the wide number of his blades surviving both in institutional and private collections. An example signed in a manner similar to the present blade is in the Historisches Museum, Dresden (Nr. 167a). Wirsberg was a member of a large family of bladesmiths active in Solingen. See WEYERSBERG, Albert, Solinger Schwertschmiede des 16.und 17. Jahrhunderts und ihre Erzeugnisse, 1926, pp. 50-52.
Belle rapière à branches, en fer ciselé à la manière d'un disciple de l'école de Munich, Allemagne vers 1600-10. A fine German rapier with chiselled swept-hilt, in the manner of a follower of the Munich school of iron chiselling, circa 1600-1610. With slender tapering blade of flattened diamond section changing to flattened hexagonal section at the forte, both sides with the bladesmith's signature "PETER WIRS BERCH" stamped within each of the three narrow fullers cut at the forte, struck on the ricasso with the mark of Peter Wirsberg, a post-horn in a pearled circle, and the forte and the ricasso each with punched and engraved borders closed by a cross mark, iron hilt formed of lenticular bars chiselled with acanthus leaves at the stems and tips, including a pair of arms carrying an outer-ring at the base, two concentric bars progressively larger and each canted towards the pommel, the upper bar linked to the middle of the knuckle-guard by a diagonal branch, inner-guard of three rounded bars converging to meet the knuckle-guard, the outer-guard chiselled with small subjects within running designs of scrolls entwined with foliage and in low relief throughout, including grotesque masks, human, mythical and zoomorphic halffigures, a series of cartouches framing figures, predominantly cavalry in combat, and all finished bright against a re-gilded ground, the pommel en suite, finely chiselled with bands of demon masks and mythical beasts about the top and bottom, and enclosing a frieze of demons set in architectural niches and strapwork roundels filled with the figures of St.George at the front and Marcus Curtius at the rear, and the grip bound with later patterned silver and copper wire between silver "Turk's heads". L. overall: 116 cm - L. blade: 99.3 cm - W.: 23.5 cm The chiselled decoration on the hilt draws on details derived from the themes of the so-called Fontainebleau school of design, notably from the published designs of the French virtuoso medallist, goldsmith, engraver and designer Etienne Delaune (1518/19-1583). Delaune's designs were strongly influential in the works of the school of iron chisellers established under the patronage of the Ducal court in Munich by the beginning of the 17th century. For a brief account of the Masters of the Munich school and their works see NORMAN, A.V.B., The Rapier and Small-Sword, 1460- 1820, London, 1980, pp. 335 and 374. For a detailed survey see STOCKLEIN, Hans, Meister des Eisenschnittes, 1922. Peter Wirsberg was a prolific craftsman to judge from the wide number of his blades surviving both in institutional and private collections. An example signed in a manner similar to the present blade is in the Historisches Museum, Dresden (Nr. 167a). Wirsberg was a member of a large family of bladesmiths active in Solingen. See WEYERSBERG, Albert, Solinger Schwertschmiede des 16.und 17. Jahrhunderts und ihre Erzeugnisse, 1926, pp. 50-52.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
