Figural Double Function Defense Cane

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Masterpiece Cane Auction

By Kimball Sterling

May 24, 2025

Set Reminder 2025-05-24 11:00:00 2025-05-24 11:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Masterpiece Cane Auction https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/kimball-sterling/masterpiece-cane-auction-19479
A European Masterpiece Cane Auction Kimball Sterling kimballsterling@earthlink.net

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• Lot Description
  Ca. 1900 Silver-plated horse head handle well-modeled, heavy-cast, and mounted on a richly hued wood shaft and a horn ferrule. The horse head with halter, characterized by a pair of large eyes and a mane covering both sides of its bent neck, is both beautiful and pleasing to hold in the hand. It bears the mark “METAL / ARGENTÉ,” which means metal silver-plated and hints at the French origin of the cane. In addition to its decorative merits, this cane's exciting feature is its heavy knob, suggesting that its design may not only serve as a walking aid but also as a potential defense weapon. When wielded well, this cane transforms into a redoubtable Knobkerrie, sometimes known as a Life Preserver or Bludgeon. In addition, the more exciting feature is that the handle unlocks 3 ½" down from the top through a simple but functional and reliable quarter-turn lock pin device built in the shaft under a pair of flush-set metal collars, releasing a 28 ½" long, triangular, and plain foil blade. The blank tempered steel blade is flexible and impressively hollowed on three sides over its entire length for both stiffness and weight savings. Clearly, the cane was used sparingly, and survived in good condition, with an astonishingly well conserved blade. H. 3 ½” x 2 ¼”, O.L. 35 ½” $600-$800 A word about the horse head design, which belongs to a series of handles with bulging eyes and asymmetrically drawn, parted lips flanked by a pair of elliptical nostrils, inspired the drawings of Thedore Gericault. Gericault's fiery, daring personality and short life fit the mold of Romantic artists of his era and, along with his controversial paintings, profoundly influenced 19th-century horse art as a genre and, for sure, the depiction of horse heads in the cane world.
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