🥇 BANNER So I found a sword!!!

[JustKeepDigging]

Found it in the woods about 3 feet deep. Found using my Whites Industrial PRL-1 which goes pretty deep so I use it for going hunting in the woods. I honestly thought it was an old pipe of some sort but I guess not! It's marked "1851" "Mitteh" anyone have any info on that? Had no luck online.

 

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[NVNutcase]

No doubts here ! Congrats on a real nice piece of history. But reading all of the posts there have been several requests to see the cloth that the sword was buried in, still waiting.

 

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[Breezie]

I really have no opinion either way on validity, but . . . .. There's really no way of knowing HOW LONG the sword has been buried. It could have been buried last month or last year. It could have spent its earlier days hanging over someone's mantel, then for some reason removed and hidden.

At any rate, it's a neat find and CONGRATULATIONS!


Breezie

 

[DigIron2]

Very nice, congratulations!

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Because of the squabbling, I didn't want to participate in this discussion... but I see that some 100%-certain facts are needed.

First... civil war era swords were not stamped with their Model-year. The date on the sword's blade is its year-of-manufacture.

Second... since a websearch for the name "Mitteh" on a sword turned up nothing, I enlarged your photo to check the spelling. I could see that the name stamped into this sword's blade is not "MITTEH" -- it is "MITTER." So, I did a websearch for that name and the word "sword." The only result I got which is relevant to your sword says a man named J. Mitter was listed in an 1853 catalog as a sword and knife maker in Austria.
Mitter Swords

That info confirms that your sword has the German/Austrian style of "D-shaped guard" hilt. Note that the sword's "grip" has a "backstrap" running along the full length of the top of the grip. ESPECIALLY, note that the grip's backstrap has a half-round tab at the middle of its edge. That is a crucially important ID-clue. It is a characteristic of European-made swords from the mid-1800s through early-1900s.

I also did a websearch of swords used in the American civil war. For example:
Swords

You can see a similar version of grip-with-backstrap on a German-made sword at the following link... but notice that the backstrap does not have the half-round tab.
Swords, Officer, non-regulation, F Potter
Also:
Swords, Officer, non-regulation, unknown Soligen maker

You've only showed us the sword's guard from the side. We need a full view of its top. Also need to know, is the guard made of brass or of iron.

 

[MuckyBottles]

On a side note I was watching "Pawn Stars" and a guy brought in a sword that was called a wrist breaker due to the swords heft. It was supposedly only worth value due to the fact it both had a german makers stamp and tiffany ' s on the sword base.

 

[ivan salis]

I could easily believe its a 1851 year made MITTER MADE --Austrian / GERMAN TYPE "P" HILT SWORD / SABER ---

MITTE IN GERMAN MEANS "GROUP' AS IN ARMY GROUP --H OF COURSE COULD MEAN --GROUP H -- 1851 AND MITTEH WAS WHAT I WAS GOING OFF BASED UPON DATA GIVEN TO ME BY THE POSTER ...

 

[Army of 1]

Wow , that is such a cool find , would be on my Bucket list of discoveries , congrats ..cheers Mick

 

[BVI Hunter]

Because of the squabbling, I didn't want to participate in this discussion... but I see that some 100%-certain facts are needed.

First... civil war era swords were not stamped with their Model-year. The date on the sword's blade is its year-of-manufacture.

Second... since a websearch for the name "Mitteh" on a sword turned up nothing, I enlarged your photo to check the spelling. I could see that the name stamped into this sword's blade is not "MITTEH" -- it is "MITTER." So, I did a websearch for that name and the word "sword." The only result I got which is relevant to your sword says a man named J. Mitter was listed in an 1853 catalog as a sword and knife maker in Austria.
Mitter Swords

That info confirms that your sword has the German/Austrian style of "P" hilt. Note that the sword's "grip" has a "backstrap" running along the full length of the top of the grip. ESPECIALLY, note that the grip's backstrap has a half-round tab at the middle of its edge. That is a crucially important ID-clue. It is a characteristic of European-made swords from the mid-1800s through early-1900s.

I also did a websearch of swords used in the American civil war. For example:
Swords

You can see a similar version of grip-with-backstrap on a German-made sword at the following link... but notice that the backstrap does not have the half-round tab.
Swords, Officer, non-regulation, F Potter
Also:
Swords, Officer, non-regulation, unknown Soligen maker

You've only showed us the sword's guard from the side. We need a full view of its top. Also need to know, is the guard made of brass or of iron.

CBG - you ARE da man!
your knowledge and willingness to share / help never ceases to amaze me.

Why has TNet not made you an Honorary Charted member yet?

 

[Jon Phillips]

Here is a more recent "P" guard sword that I own...it is a cheaper, fraternal order type sword or...sometimes called a WW1 sword.

View attachment 1048519


And the one that I mentioned from Dade's battle....A German made sword that was in Florida in 1835...


View attachment 1048520

Not a whole lot of difference...The scabbards are about the same as well.

Officers (or anyone that wanted one) bought their own swords, and for a long time, there were no real regulations on what was used, so it makes it real hard to pin some of them down to certain events without a pre-existing story, or a find from a known fort, battlefield, etc.

It's a cool find, and would be an awesome experience to have dug it up, regardless of how it got there, or for how long!

 

[Gary1963]

Congratulations !! Awesome find!!

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

Congratulations on your sword find Jon!
Definitely a once in a lifetime find, good on you for not stopping the dig!

Dave

 

[Tnmountains]

Here is a more recent "P" guard sword that I own...it is a cheaper, fraternal order type sword or...sometimes called a WW1 sword.

View attachment 1048519


And the one that I mentioned from Dade's battle....A German made sword that was in Florida in 1835...


View attachment 1048520

Not a whole lot of difference...The scabbards are about the same as well.

Officers (or anyone that wanted one) bought their own swords, and for a long time, there were no real regulations on what was used, so it makes it real hard to pin some of them down to certain events without a pre-existing story, or a find from a known fort, battlefield, etc.

It's a cool find, and would be an awesome experience to have dug it up, regardless of how it got there, or for how long!

Might want to look at your "dove head" Jon . I have one by Alcoso with War markings it is worth a couple good detectors. Did the OP ever reply about the cloth found with it?

 

[Ohio river coin hunter]

No doubts here ! Congrats on a real nice piece of history. But reading all of the posts there have been several requests to see the cloth that the sword was buried in, still waiting.

Great find! but i dont understand how hard is it to take a pic of the cloth,which has been asked about . considering this is not to prove any validation but to help in dating and part of the history,

 

[Jon Phillips]

Might want to look at your "dove head" Jon . I have one by Alcoso with War markings it is worth a couple good detectors. Did the OP ever reply about the cloth found with it?

Thanks!

I'll check it out!

He said the cloth was drying off, and he would try to get us some pics...

 

[MuckyBottles]

 

[Doc Arey]

 

[MuckyBottles]

Still waiting for one of our European comrades to find one of these bad boy's, the Ulfberht. I wonder if it would be a banner..lol
View attachment 1048588

 

[Guest 1551]

you are one lucky son of a gun. Dream find for me! Unbelievable! Just gorgeous.

 

[unclemac]

it sounds like to me that the handle as gone before it was buried.

 

[Discrimination Dave]

how hard can it be to walk outside, take a picture of the cloth and post it?
Pretty frustrating.