The included listing from William Dykes Antiques identifies the sword as Colonial American and notes: "This is an extremely rare child's small-sword marked 'GW' with an asterisk above the letters. The touchmark 'GW' is the mark of an unrecorded silversmith. A nearly-identical child's small-sword is shown in a book by Daniel D. Hartzler entitled 'Silver Mounted Swords' on page 94" (pages included). The sword features a 19 1/4 inch blade with tapered, hollow ground triangular cross-section , silver hilt with wire wrapped grip and braided wire bands, "*/GW" at the pommel end of the knuckle bow, and a "Turk's head" pommel. Smallswords, also known as court swords, were essentially part of daily wear for gentlemen and military officers in the 18th century. Should a man's honor need defending, he was likely to rely on his smallsword in duel. Boys might receive an appropriately sized sword after they were "breeched" and dressed like their fathers. Provenance: William Dykes Antiques; Property of a Gentleman

Fine with dark brown patina and moderate oxidation on the blade, loose fit guard, and attractive aged patina on the silver.