This is a wonderful piece of Confederate naval history! This is the cutlass that was carried by sailors in the Confederate navy. This is a variation of the pattern that is illustrated on page 199 of Pritchard's book, Collecting the Confederacy. He tells of how it was likely made for and likely by the Selma Arsenal in Selma, Alabama but some people feel they were made in Memphis by Thomas Leech & Company. This one is in great shape all over. The blade is full length at 21-1/4th inches and it is 2 inches at the widest point. It has the pitting at the end of the blade that you sometimes hear referred to as "Blood Pitting" but I've never had much faith in that term. The hand guard on these cutlasses are very distinctive. They are made by forming a piece of sheet brass that is rolled on the edges and has the raised ribs to reinforce the guard strength. The quillion of the sword has the rolled design from the factory to reinforce it. On the blade side of the hand guard, it has the assembly number "774" stamped into the metal. The handle of the sword is made of cast brass and this one exhibits all of the wonderful casting detail of a Southern weapon. The handle is made to look like a fish scale pattern. They used this pattern to make the handle easier to hold onto when it was wet. When you look closely, you can see the pins that hold the handle in place. This is a beautiful 100% original Confederate naval cutlass that displays well from all angles.