Basket hilt sword 2

Late 17th century basket hilt sword from the Braidwood sub-collection of Dean Castle arms and armour. Basket is of bird cage type with straight quillons. Weapon bears the 'Passau wolf'mark. This mark on cut and thrust weapons originated in Passau, Germany, and later came to Solingen, where the running wolf design also became known as a 'Solingen mark'. These marks are typically inlaid with brass, which remnants of can be seen in this weapon.   Basket hilt swords provided good level of protection for hands when fighting with an opponent, especially with cutting motions. Swords such as this example were used primarily in a military setting, as opposed to rapiers, which are used more in civilian dress.