One of a kind opportunity to own an INCREDIBLE artifact that is guaranteed to have been THERE!! On the spot in Sharpsburg, Maryland in September 1862!
This is a knife, complete with hand written tag inscribed:
\"Found at German Church Sharpsburg S. Shawl Nov. 18, 1863
The tag is faded, difficult to read and even more difficult to photo, but to the best of my ability, that is the inscription.
The knife is in excellent condition with genuine signs of wear and use during the period. The handle is made of bone with a copper guard and pommel. The ferrule is made of brass. The hand forged steel blade is in quite good condition with some dark spots but mostly nice gray metal commensurate with age and use. The blade is tight and secure but the copper guard is slightly wobbly.
The scabbard is AMAZING! Crudely fashioned of sheet copper then hand crimped together without solder!!! The tip is made of different material, probably brass. There is another copper piece, also hand crimped at the throat which has a small extension with a hole in it. Presumably for a thong or chain for attachment to a belt.
As to the inscription, I am sure it states to have been found in Sharpsburg. It also, I believe CLEARLY says \" Germ. Church\". The tag is chipping away at the edges and part of the inscription is obscured.
The German Church also known as the Dunker Church featured prominently during the battle fought on Sept. 17, 1862 and was the site of intense fighting. See period photo.
The tag seems to be inscribed S Shawl or could be L. Shawl or Shaw. I did cursory research and did not find anything of the like.
I am sure that this is a rare and exquisite find and a wonderful addition to even the most advanced collection. A knife lost on September 17th 1862, Found on November 18th 1863 and available here now!!
Please offer with confidence. This item as with all we sell his guaranteed to be original or your money returned!!
On Apr-01-18 at 10:23:01 PDT, seller added the following information:
A friend has looked closely any the knife, scabbard and tag and done some more in Depth research an related the following. Based on the crude quality of the knife and particularly the scabbard, it his his opinion that this is a Confederate piece, made in a black smith shop. Many features of this knife point toward this probability.
Most importantly we looked at the tag under higher magnification and realize the name above the date says S. Showe. Research has provided the Name of: Samuel Showe. He was a resident of Sharpsburg during the war. Of course no details of his involvement in any type of souvenir hunting was noted, only that he lived there before, during and after the battle.
More information may certainly be discovered now that the Name is more clearly defined.
