Hermès French Officers Sword Letter Opener

  A large steel and wood French officers sword letter opener by Hermès. Of a good weight and very well made, this piece isa large example of this type of sword letter opener. The making letter openers in the form of miniature swords was quite popular for use at home, and took many forms and metals. This example is very well crafted with knuckle-bow and loop guard in the traditional open work design, as found on the real swords. The grip is made from an ebonised wood as was common from these French swords. Swords in these designs were issued to French officers toward the middle of the nineteenth Century all the way into the early twentieth, and did not alter much in design or construction. This would make sense as to why the luxury French atelier, Hermès, would choose to replicate this model in miniature; a great representation of French military steel. The blade is signed "Hermès" and the base of the guard also features a reference number. The condition of the piece is good overall, bu