Sword Hilt and Counterstamp

Ahab8

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Oct 15, 2013
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Hey guys a friend here in Maine asked me if I could help with IDs of these items and give any info that I could find. The hilt has opposing fleur de lis and crowns. He's wondering a time frame and also a possible country of origin. The WHE counterstamp I thought would be an easy one where it's such a nice one but I personally haven't been able to find any info. It is on what he believes is a 1799 half penny. Thanks for any help my friends
 

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Swords are not my thing, so no comment on the hilt.

The coin needs measuring, but lets a assume its 1799 British Halfpenny. My first observation is that it has close to 50-100 years of wear. Which dates the Company that counter-stamped it to 1850-1900.
Its not in my book, & would be near impossible to research. You're looking for a name of a Company owner with the Initials WHE without knowing which town or city they were based in the UK. The Crown might indicate they had Royal Endorsement (forget the proper term) from Queen Victoria, but that doesn't narrow it much. I have no contacts/experts in these but that is your only slim hope.
 

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Swords are not my thing, so no comment on the hilt.

The coin needs measuring, but lets a assume its 1799 British Halfpenny. My first observation is that it has close to 50-100 years of wear. Which dates the Company that counter-stamped it to 1850-1900.
Its not in my book, & would be near impossible to research. You're looking for a name of a Company owner with the Initials WHE without knowing which town or city they were based in the UK. The Crown might indicate they had Royal Endorsement (forget the proper term) from Queen Victoria, but that doesn't narrow it much. I have no contacts/experts in these but that is your only slim hope.


Not necessary because a 1799 could have been stamped in 1799 and then still circulated for many years and it would not affect the countermark very much except for maybe dulling it around the edges.
 

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Not necessary because a 1799 could have been stamped in 1799 and then still circulated for many years and it would not affect the countermark very much except for maybe dulling it around the edges.
If you read up on the history of these types, that's the normal date range & they used a lots of worn coins, plus the type face is a giveaway. But I get the principle of what your saying.:thumbsup:
 

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If you read up on the history of these types, that's the normal date range & they used a lots of worn coins, plus the type face is a giveaway. But I get the principle of what your saying.:thumbsup:


That's why I said not necessarily, and not, to correct you... :)
 

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Thank you guys. I appreciate it. Maybe having your names on this thread will generate some more conversation
 

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The hilt looks to be from a Rapier and given the decoration, the first thought would be French, but that's far from definite. Rapiers were popular from the 1500's up to the later 16 - early 1700's when they started falling out of favor. I can't say how old this one is, but you may be able to get an idea based on where it was found and other things found around it....
 

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