UBB.threads Forums Edged Weapons European Edged Weapons Wilkinson Sword Question

Does anyone have a way to date a Wilkinson Sword proofmark? I have an old Masonic Sword by Wilkinson and would like to know when it was made. The omly markings of any kind is the Wilkinson Sword name on the blade.

Hi Notaguru

I was hoping some of our British members would respond. I only have one item with Wilkinson TM. This is a Scottish Dirk Mark III. Made prior to WWI. I hope this helps.

Sorry about the quality of the photo. The TM says Wilkinson Sword Co ltd, London, made in England.

Jim

In the mid 19th century Wilkinson sword blades had a disc inset into the blade with the initials “HW” surrounded by etching. In fact some of these early swords were proofed (tested) by Henry Wilkinson himself. There are different styles seen as time progressed with a half dozen variations. Which were eventually replaced completely by etching, and stamping is seen with some types of later items as well. Sight unseen my guess is turn of the century (19/20th) when lodge swords were much more popular than now. FP

Here is a shot of an early 1900's blade with an inset brass disk that says "PROVED". There is a Star of David surrounding the disk.

There are no other marks on the blade beyond the cypher of Edward VII.

Another shot

The basket, again with the cypher of Edward VII

Dave, The sword appears to be that of a British Infantry Officer - pattern of 1897. The six sided star I think is derived from something else and is seen on much earlier “Talisman” blades, but offhand I can’t remember what it is, and will have to think about where the information might be located. As for the proofmark disc itself in the blade unfortunately for the purposes of research it’s a generic one. Which is seen on a number of blades made in Germany for the export market to England. And on some British swords as well with some for example also being seen with retailer’s markings. As you probably already know in an interesting departure from earlier swords it’s designed only for thrusting and usually the blade edges are blunt. But like their German cousins the IOD 89 they are sometimes found field sharpened with an edge applied to the blade to convert it to a dual purpose one. Which was done for those officers who were mobilized and going off to fight in WW I. Regards, FP

Hi Dave.

I have the same proved inset on a Marine NCO sword I have that was a German export. I believe my sword is post WWII but do not know for sure.

As to the six sided star. I have that also on my early British Naval Dirk. It seems to be a standard fixture on many British Edged weapons.

Beautiful Basket gripped sword Dave. There is hope for you yet outside the "dark side"

Jim

Sorry for the delay. To provide a basis for comparison, especially as regards the Wilkinson proofmarks that started the topic, here are a couple of examples. The one to the far left is fairly early and doesn’t seem to have any tarnishing. Which leads me to suspect that it may actually be made from gold or a gold alloy.

The middle one is from when they changed the basic design and no longer used a round disc - but what they used for “trade quality” swords is not clear and needs to be looked into a little more. I think that it’s probably made of brass.

And the one to the right is from when they abandoned the discs altogether. The “proofmark” is etched into the blade which was one of the final steps in its manufacture. Which I think contradicts the original purpose to some extent. Because it was supposed to signify that the sword passed all of the tests, and was presentable in a finished state sufficient to carry the Wilkinson name. Of course by then it no probably no longer really mattered and was just symbolic of the perceived quality of their swords. FP

Frogprince,
I've wondered about this for some time. Thanks for sharing that information and I bow to your expertise on all matters.
Don't know exactly how true this is, but found that even today the "Star Proof" mark is required on US and British military swords due to blade specifications. Some type of quality control I guess. I believe on modern blades, it's two triangles combined, rather than the two separate interlocking triangles.
I read somewhere and who knows, that the six pointed star was used by the Persians to signify that the blades were made of Damascus steel quality.
We can't rule out the significant use of this symbol by the British military in the past on many items. Just for example, not sure if actually in the shape of a Hexagram or not, but the British created eight campaign, six pointed star medals for WWII alone and the British Navy has used the six pointed star I believe on shoulder boards. I could be wrong on this. Also, the crown wanted the world to be British and the points of the star symbolize north, south, east, west, up and down. The combination of the two triangles symbolizes victory of good over evil. It was all for God and Crown back then.
Then again, it sure looks like the Star of David or "The Shield of David" (Hexagram) Two interlocking triangles. King David was a military hero and folk lore links this symbol to a magical shield supposedly owned by King David that protected him from his enemies. And again the combination of the two triangles is said to symbolize victory of good over evil.

Anyway, this symbol was used by a few cultures and religions for different reasons, mostly pagan I believe, but whatever the reason for the "Star Proof", it’s always fun to guess.

Another example of the Star Proof mark on a sword I have.

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Mikee, You bring up some observations about the six sided star which I think is probably an interesting topic just by itself. Not really one of my primary areas of expertise - anyone who has better information is encouraged to “call” me on this: While the six sided star goes a long way back into antiquity, I believe it was adopted by the Zionist movement in the later part of the 19th century. Adopted by the movement well after Henry Wilkinson began to use the six sided star for his swords. And although it’s now a part of Israel’s flag, it was primarily the Menorah that was used in earlier times as a symbol of Jewish identity.

And as you alluded to with the reference to Damascus, I think that it may have been referred to earlier as the “Star of Damascus” symbolizing blades from there. From a time when steel making was in its infancy, with the mark being used by later European blade makers as a symbol of quality with blades that they made domestically. An idea which might be supported by the almost “Arabesque” (?) appearance of the etching surrounding the earliest of the three types of proofs that I posted (speculation here - no documented proof).

My overall point really being that the star was used by multiple cultures, and that my best recollection is that it is more of an armorers type of marking signifying quality. And that from its origin on swords by Henry Wilkinson the six sided star was widely copied by his contemporaries surviving into the present time as was mentioned earlier.

And I would be very interested in comments from anyone who has some additional information regarding any of the various aspects of the topic. Best Regards, FP

PS: It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a Siamese Infantry Officer’s sword. Very nice