AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN SWORDS IN THE 



HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS OF THE UNITED 



STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



By Theodore T. Belote 

 Curat 07' of History, United States National Museum 



INTRODUCTION 



The sword possesses a greater degree of personal historical interest 

 than any other t3''pe of weapon. It was one of the earliest instru- 

 ments of offense and defense devised by man, and the period of its 

 use extends from the dawn of history down to the present time. 

 The long period of its existence as a weapon is paralleled by the 

 universality of its use, since it has been employed by the eastern as 

 well as by the western nations. In Europe the sword has occupied 

 a unique position, both in war and peace, since it has figured not 

 only as a weapon but also as a badge of authority and as an indica- 

 tion of the social rank of the wearer. After the time of its useful- 

 ness as a weapon had terminated, the sword became an object of 

 special interest in connection with the art and history of the period 

 to which it originally belonged. 



The militar}^ and naval swords in the historical collections of the 

 United States National Museum form merely a small part of larger 

 and more general collections of these two types of materials in the 

 care of the Museum. These collections represent in graphic form the 

 military and naval history of the United States and of those foreign 

 countries with which the United States has been in closest contact 

 both as regards war and peace. Although the other objects in these 

 collections also serve the purpose of thus illustrating history, there 

 is an exceptional degree of historical interest attached to the military 

 and naval swords in the National Museum collection, which represent 

 not only the art of warfare but also to a notable extent the individ- 

 uals and the ideals involved. 



AIMS OF THE WORK 



This bulletin has been prepared primarily for the purpose of pre- 

 senting to that section of the public interested in historical museum 

 work a permanent record of the material herein described, accom- 



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