The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of March 29, 2024
Executioner's Sword
late 1600s
Overall: 108.9 cm (42 7/8 in.); Blade: 85.7 cm (33 3/4 in.); Quillions: 22.5 cm (8 7/8 in.); Grip: 15 cm (5 7/8 in.)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1620
Location: 210A Armor Court
Did You Know?
The inscription on this sword reads, "When I raise this sword, so I wish that this poor sinner will receive eternal life."Description
Execution by decapitation was generally reserved for the nobility during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Although the axe was favored in England, for centuries swords were used throughout Central Europe. The blades were often etched with moralizing inscriptions and designs representing Justice (as here), the gallows, the rack, or the Crucifixion. By the early 1700s swords were no longer primarily used in Europe for executions, but they still functioned as symbols of power. This sword was probably ceremonial for a formal procedure or procession.- Edwin J. Brett (1828-1895), London, England-1916Frank Gair Macomber, Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art1916-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Oh
- Catalogue of Arms and Armour. Vol. 4, 17th to 19th century and a few pieces of iron work. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], [1900-1915]. Mentioned and Reproduced: No. (209) 228 archive.orgGilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mentioned: pp. 129-130, E97 archive.orgFliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. pp. 112, 171; cat. no. 165Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. cat. no. 142, p. 189
- Armor Court Reinstallation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
- {{cite web|title=Executioner's Sword|url=false|author=|year=late 1600s|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.1620