This sword has a broad double-edged blade with three shallow fullers (grooves) running along the entire length, which suggests that it might have been shortened or ground down in its working lifetime. The shield on the grip is engraved with the Imperial Eagle of Germany and the hilt is of a type associated with infantrymen and Landsknechts (German mercenaries) in the 1520s. Comparable examples survive in museum collections across Europe, but principally Carlsruhe, Berlin, Zurich, Vienna and Paris. This sword was found in the Thames near Westminster Palace landing stage and might have been lost by one of Emperor Charles V's entourage when he visited London in 1522.
