Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Combination Sword and Wheellock Pistol
Not on view
A masterpiece of French Renaissance goldsmiths’ work and sixteenth-century technology, this richly embellished weapon combines a sword of classical inspiration with a wheellock pistol of the most up-to-date firearms technology. The relief ornament on the hilt includes classically inspired trophies of arms, masks, and, as a pommel, a monstrous lionlike creature. Probably made for a member of the court, the sword adds luster to the Met’s renowned collection of French arms and armor associated with Henry II (r. 1547–59), which includes a complete armor (Gallery 374) and a recently acquired bronze cannon (Gallery 371). This sword may be the one shown in a late seventeenth-century still life painting also given to The Met by Irene Roosevelt Aitken.
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