Artwork Page for Rapier

Details / Information for Rapier

Rapier

c.1625–50

Federico Picinino

(Italian)
Culture
Italy, Milan
Medium
steel; hilt russeted; wire grip
Measurements
Overall: 144.8 cm (57 in.); Quillions: 22.5 cm (8 7/8 in.)
Weight: 1.38 kg (3.04 lbs.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.695
Public Domain
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Location
210A Armor Court
Print

Description

The rapier was a sword worn with civilian dress and used in duels. The term rapier derives from the 16th-century French word rapière, which in turn was derived from the Spanish espada ropera, or “dress sword.” The rapier was a light weapon with a straight double-edged and pointed blade that, with the development of the art of fencing in the 1500s and 1600s, gradually became narrower and lighter, and thus suitable for thrusts only. With the new technique of swordplay emphasizing the point of the blade, sword guards became more complex to protect the duelist’s unarmored hand. These elaborate guards were frequently decorated by various techniques—chiseling, bluing, russeting, and damascening.
A steel-hilted rapier features a long, narrow blade beneath a complex, dark-metal guard. The hilt consists of several arcing bars and a bowl-shaped shell pierced with a lattice pattern. One quillon extends straight before hooking into a teardrop tip, while a knuckle bow curves upward to a ribbed, bulb-shaped pommel. The central grip is bound in tightly wound wire, completing the assembly.

Rapier

c.1625–50

Federico Picinino

(Italian)
Italy, Milan

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