art-of-swords:

Twin Dao Swords

• Dated: circa 18th century
• Culture: Chinese
• Medium: steel, copper, silk, wood, leather

Source: Copyright © 2016 Historical Arms & Armor

art-of-swords:

Small Sword

• Dated: circa 1655
  
• Culture: French
  
• Medium: iron, steel, wood, wire
  
• Provenance: Emperor Charles VI; by whom given to the 1st Duke of Marlborough. Bland from whom bought by George IV, 4th March 1789 (£26 15s)
  

This sword was purchased by the future George IV in 1789 to further enhance what was already a substantial collection of historic weapons. In the manuscript catalogue of his Armoury at Carlton House this sword is said to have been given by the Emperor Charles VI (1685-1740) to the first Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722) and its hilt - like that of the so-called Hampden sword and the embossed parade shield - was attributed to Benvenuto Cellini.

While the second of these claims can be set aside on the simple grounds that Cellini made no swords, the supposed provenance, though uncorroborated, is not so implausible; Charles VI did indeed present a sword to the Duke of Marlborough in 1703, but that sword had a hilt set with diamonds. The iron hilt demonstrates a range of techniques executed to the highest standard. The pommel, with its four-headed tang-button (or finial), shells and quillons, is forged, chiselled and pierced; while the grip, which is made of wood cut with spiralling grooves in two directions, is bound with steel wire and overlaid by a further network of twisted wire.

The precise subject matter of the figurative decoration has not been identified. On one side of the pommel is a scene of soldiers in Roman dress approaching a town, and on the other is a group of captives led before an officer standing in a chariot. The larger scenes on the shells are the same on both sides, one in the opposite direction to the other; they comprise a cavalry combat with a commander in a cartouche, and soldiers presenting captured colours to a commander. The quillons are in the form of satyrs, and the other secondary motifs include serpents, masks and naked, winged children. The blade is probably a near-contemporary replacement.

Source: Copyright © 2015 Royal Collection Trust/Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

bijoux-et-mineraux:

Hemimorphite with Cerussite - M'Fouati Mine, M'Fouati, M'fouati District, Bouenza Department, Republic of Congo

art-of-swords:

Silver mounted Kris Dagger

• Dated: 20th century
  
• Provenance: Bali 
  
• Measurements: overall length 56.7 cm
  

The dagger has an undulated, double-edged blade of fine pamor, ribbed at the centre, featuring short grooves at the forte and chiselled curls at the base. The silver mendak features red stone cabochons. The dagger has a silver selut and a silver grip shaped as an in the round, crowned demon, enriched with floral decorations.

The scabbard has an ebony wrangka with square borders on a side, and circular borders on the other, the silver pendok being decorated at the front with three bas-relieved mythological characters and fine, floral motifs, everything surmounted by a cusped valve depicting the head of a monster.

The rear surface is enriched with bas-relieved decorations at the edges and smooth and engraved at the centre. The rear surface of the wrangka is also provided with a lozenge-shaped mount featuring bas-relieved floral motifs.

Source: Copyright © 2015 Czerny’s International Auction House S.R.L.

littlelimpstiff14u2:

The Incredible Biro & Gold Leaf  Fantasy Art of  Rebecca Yanovskaya

Rebecca Yanovskaya is a freelance illustrator working in the fantasy, sci-fi and horror genres. She frequently illustrates mythological stories, natural forces, and aesthetically strong characters. Rebecca’s influences include decorative arts, neoclassical and Pre-Raphaelite arts, and theatrical costuming. Despite most artists in her genre using digital and traditional painting tools, she has made the choice to construct her pieces with ballpoint pen and gold leaf. As one of the only primarily ballpoint pen artists working in fantastic realism, her work is easy to identify. A combination of epic scope and moody atmosphere define her signature style, in what can be described as the “Art of the Sublime”.

Rebecca is a graduate of the Illustration program at Sheridan College. She lives and works in Toronto, Canada.      Her Tumblr