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MODEL 1833 US ARMY DRAGOON SABER w/ SCABBARD –
VERY NICE EXAMPLE - DATED AMES 1837 w/ “UNITED STATES”
ENGRAVED ON THE BLADE: This very historic US
Army Dragoon Model 1833 Saber is highlighted by the
engraved inscription on the blade “UNITED STATES” over a
floral banner, and retains a very legible, engraved
maker’s mark: “N. P. AMES, CUTLER, SPRINGFIELD, 1837”.
The engraving is still legible, enhancing the value of
this Model 1833 Saber as the engraving on these blades
was very shallow when it was originally applied and due
to wear and cleaning through the years, the characters
are often completely worn away.
In addition to the maker’s mark, the saber has all of
the correct inspector stamps present and fully legible
on the components. Both the blade - stamped immediately
above the guard and below the date, and on the quillon
disk, are stamped “WS”, indicating they were inspected
by William Smith. The face of the guard is inspected
“HKC” and “ORD”, for Major Henry Knox Craig, the final
Ordnance Department Inspector who accepted the finished
saber.
The blade is generally bright with no heavy pitting and
only scattered darkened spots peppered evenly over the
surface. The majority of the blade surface still
retains a smooth, bright, shiny surface. The blade is
full length at 34” and has not been sharpened out of
profile or shortened.
The guard has a very nice naturally aged patina, and is
full form with no misshaping or breaks. The original
leather covering the grip is tight, showing none of the
surface wear to the high points often seen, rather it is
fully intact with a bright, shiny surface. The wire
wrap is firmly in place and complete. The leather
washer is present. The guard assembly is attached to
tang with the correct, original spanner nut, and it does
not appear to have ever been removed.
The original steel scabbard appears in every way to be
original to this sabre and it fits the sabre with a
minimal amount of play. Both of the correct split rings
are present and full form. The drag is correctly
stamped with the inspector initials “WS”. One side of
the scabbard is generally smooth, with the other having
some light pitting evenly present. The scabbard has a
pleasing aged brown color. The seams are all tight with
one small hole at the bottom of the scabbard on one
side, adjacent to the drag. The scabbard has the
characteristic dent on both sides, approximately one
third of the way up from the drag. The Model 1833 Sabre
tended to rattle in the scabbard, not only a nuisance,
but a serious determent when in the field. A
significant number of these sabres seem to have the same
set of dents, or crimps if you will, in the same general
area of the scabbard. While these scabbards were well
known for their light-weight construction, and tendency
to be dented, bent or broken in service, given the
frequency in which these crimps show up in the same
location on the scabbard, it is possible this was
intentionally done by the soldiers as an accepted
practice in order to trap the blade in the scabbard and
reduce the rattling noise.
This Model 1833 Dragoon Saber is a very attractive
historical saber from the early days of the nation when
the US Army maintained a very limited mounted force, and
due to limited production and a relatively low survival
rate, examples of this saber are quite scarce. This
specimen presents in very nice condition with all of the
features intact and it will be a pleasure to own with no
need to upgrade it. (0910) $2650
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