Accession Number

1986.008.0838

Alternate object names

Sword;Dagger

Creation Date

circa 1620

Description

A rapier is a type of sword with a long, relatively narrow blade that was used primarily for thrusting. This rapier from the Atocha is of the “swept-hilt” variety, but much of the hilt did not survive the long immersion in the sea. Instead, much of the inner guard (the portion of the hilt closer to the blade) has survived, and it is of a style typical of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, as is the egg-shaped pommel. The grip is made of wood wrapped with silver wire in a twisting design that would have improved the user’s hold. The blade is signed "Thiel Koller" on both faces, indicating German manufacture.

Exhibition Label

Case Caption (2023):

Hand Weapons

The rapier was used by gentlemen and common soldiers alike. Its light but deadly blade required changes in fighting techniques that emphasized intellect and training over brute force.

Born in Seville, Spain, Jeronimo Sánchez de Carranza was a nobleman, scientist, and humanist but also an expert swordsman. He created a new school of fighting named destreza (dexterity), that incorporated logic, geometry, and lethal efficiency with a sense of morality. Using these values, he developed the ideal of the honorable warrior-poet, which remained the model for Spanish noblemen for centuries to come.

For his valor in fighting for Phillip II, de Carranza was appointed to the Order of the Image of Christ, formerly known as the Knights Templar. Later, he was sent to the Americas as the governor of Honduras. He died in Guatemala in 1608.
Object Caption (2023):

Swept-Hilt Rapiers
Steel and silver (c.1600)
Gift of Jamestown Inc.
1986.008.0838, 1986.008.1001