162 - Bell-guard schläger, probably Turnerschaft Germania Dresden, etched oak leaves and Zirkel, 1908

Bell-guard schläger, probably Turnerschaft Germania Dresden, etched oak leaves and Zirkel, 1908 Metal, bell-guard schläger, student fencing weapon, probably of the Turnerschaft Germania Dresden, straight narrow blade, stamped on the tang “(G)LASER & SOHN DRESDEN”, closed hemispherical bell guard with etched decoration of oak leaves and laurel, in an oval field the Zirkel of the Turnerschaft Germania Dresden, opposite the colours shield, around the rim a dedication in Fraktur script with the names M. Sommer and F. Thomass, each with Zirkel, as well as Dresden, Christmas 1908, riveted thumb bar with scroll etching, two pins on the rim of the bell, knuckle bow, grip with ray skin, light-coloured ferrule and pommel cap, L. 100 cm, blade length 86 cm Basket-hilted schlägers and bell-guard schlägers are student fencing weapons for the Mensur and both go back to the Göttingen Hieber; since about 1850 arranged Mensur bouts have been fought with them. The bell-guard schläger, named after its bell-shaped hand guard, was used above all at universities in eastern Germany such as Halle, Leipzig, Dresden, Tharandt, Freiberg, Berlin and Greifswald; elsewhere fencing was done with basket-hilted schlägers. The Zirkel is the monogram-like identifying mark of a student fraternity, an intertwining of the initial letters of the fraternity's name and motto, usually written in a single stroke. The exclamation mark after the intertwined letters only appeared between 1820 and 1830. Fraternity members place the Zirkel after their signature, and it appears on fraternity items such as glasses, tankards and flags. The stamp on the tang probably refers to the Dresden firm Glaser & Sohn, which Moritz and Richard Glaser founded in 1868 and which was based at Borngasse 5.