Sword (Cavalry saber)

Description

The stylized lion head and slotted cross guard of this cavalry saber were plated to resemble brass and to prevent rust because they were cast iron, likely from a pattern originating in Europe (research on-going). Remarkably the shagreen grip (or faux sharkskin) survives, wrapped securely with copper and brass wire around the wood core. The blade has a wide fuller and long sharpened edge that tapers to a blunted tip. The spine is engraved with the blade maker's name: "W/M. TESCHE.PETERS.SOHN.IN.SOLINGEN.FECIT" [Wilhelm Tesche, son of Peter Tesche in Solingen (modern Germany) made this.] Each side of the blade is engraved with large capital letters and the pictorial image of the American Federal seal eagle with 13 stars. The inscription is most legible on the proper left side: "AMERICAN [Federal seal image] LIGHT.HORSE." Tesche’s saber blades are well-documented imports in the young United States, and this one has a family history that suggests it was owned either by Brigadier General Leonard Covington (d. 1813) a cavalry officer whose career began with Light Dragoons or possibly by a member of the Bealle family like Colonel William Dent Bealle (d. 1829). Both men were friends living originally in Maryland.