This nice original British sword with a total lenght of fourty inches is an excellent original example of the British Infantry Officer's sword in the 1897 pattern with royal cypher and crown. British officers were expected to buy their own swords and whoever the British officer was who once owned it, he bought it in Winchester. This style of sword was adopted from the British War Department in 1895. The unique looking sword-knot with its distinctive acorn was a part of the sword. It was a wrist strap intended to avoid the loss of the sword in the battle. The field version came with the wooden leather-wrapped scabbard. At parades the scabbard was replaced with one made out of nickel plated steel like the one offered for sale here. Experts say that this type of sword is one of the best swords ever made for infantry officers. It looks to us as the this one is a 1897 pattern George V sword which was made between 1910 and 1936. It is in very good original condition with almost no surface rust on the basket and only a few very minor defects on the leather of the scabbard.