Miniature Enamelled Brass Rapier with Rosette Guard

A small decorative sword in the style of an old cup-hilt rapier. It has a bright silver-toned blade and a polished brass hilt. The curved guard is decorated with a red enamelled rosette inside a pierced gold ring, with touches of blue enamel and a band of fretwork beneath. The base of the blade is decorated in matching red, blue and black geometric enamel. A straight cross-guard with turned finials, a ribbed grip and a round pommel complete the hilt. The blade is blunt, so it's purely decorative and could most likely double as a letter opener. It makes a lovely companion to our shell-guard rapier, or a smart desk piece on its own.

The word "rapier" most likely comes from the Spanish espada ropera, meaning "sword of the robes" or "dress sword". It was a sword worn with everyday civilian clothes rather than with armour on the battlefield. The term was in common use by the late 15th century. As fencing developed through the 1500s and 1600s, rapier blades grew narrower and lighter until they were made almost entirely for thrusting with the point.