34 - A halberd for sergeants of the "Alemannic" (German) infantry regiments

A halberd for sergeants of the "Alemannic" (German) infantry regiments dating: 18th Century provenance: Sardinian Kingdom, A double-edged cusp with central rib; at the base, two small, dark, convex-edged wings with the rear-fluke pointing towards the shaft. Ferrule shaped as a truncated cone with two lugs resembling anchor prongs; with ring and marked "OL" at the base. Flat straps; the shaft is a cylindrical piece of wood (probably from a later period), with an iron tip. The 18th-century Savoyard army comprised, alongside the national regiments, "Alemannic" (German) infantry regiments, recruited from German-speaking territories, including the famous Rehbinder (1711), which was later merged into the Real Alemanno (1774). The sergeants of these units were equipped with an alabardina, a weapon symbolising rank with a distinctly asymmetrical profile, featuring two pairs of curls above and below the axe and rear fluke. A direct comparison can be found in the Royal Armoury in Turin (Royal Museums, Royal Palace), which houses a German-style halberd from the first half of the 18th century featuring typological similarities to these weapons. A further item of an intermediate type is held at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan (cat. 534).