Here is a very cool looking short sword that is known as a "faschinenmesser" which translates as a "fascine knife" or knife used for cutting bundles of brushwood). These were issued primarily for constructing field fortifications, clearing fields of fire, and hacking paths through the underbrush for the artillery to roll through. They were only secondarily a weapon of last resort. As a tool, the shape of this blade, and the heft and balance of it is that of a machete. As a 19th century soldier’s sidearm, the fancier hilt was in order. There are a number of variations of the faschinenmesser, and as with many things, they often differed between German states, and there were Artillery, Pioneer and Infantry versions. This type seems to be mostly associated with Saxony, and several internet references list it as the model 1845. The 18-1/2 inch blade is 1/4th of an inch thick at the base. The flat of the blade is 1-1/4th of an inch at its widest. The blade is completely unmarked. There are no markings on the hilt, which opens up the possibility that this particular example was an export. This is a great looking sword.