A light South German two-handed sword, circa 1560The narrow, double-edged thrusting blade of flattened hexagonal section. Deep fullers on both sides of the upper third, struck with the signature "Sebastian -Hernandez". The long ricasso with fullers, a smith's mark stamped at the root of both short, lateral guards. Iron hilt with extended, straight quillons and large guard rings on both sides. Remnants of the original blackening. Stepped grip with original leather cover over cord winding. Smooth, pear-shaped pommel. Length 170 cm, weight 2,335 g.Exceptional fencing weapon, not designed for cutting but for thrusting at the target, unlike the majority of the surviving two-handed swords. Only a small group of similar swords is known to exist around the world, e.g. in the Wallace Collection in London (A 473).Bladesmiths bearing the identical name of Sebastian Hernandez are documented in Toledo and Seville during the second half of the 16th and the 17th century.Provenance: Collection of Dr. Heinrich Tanner in Herisau (Switzerland). Illustrated in: Flammberg-Schwerter, Katalog der Sonderausstellung in der Festung Heldsberg, St. Margrethen, Herisau 2005, p. 34 f. (Auction Fischer/Lucerne, November 1984).Condition: II