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D2012-CL. Scabbard
British Ordnance musket bayonet scabbard
D2012-CL. Scabbard

British Ordnance musket bayonet scabbard

Dateca.1750-1770
OriginGreat Britain
MediumLeather, brass and thread
DimensionsOverall: 16 1/2" Width:1 7/16"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number2012-82
DescriptionBrown leather triangular bayonet scabbard tooled on the wide face and stitched down the center of the reverse. Cast brass hook of typical form with American sheet-brass replacement tip set into the bottom.
Label TextThe British "Land Pattern" or "Brown Bess" bayonet was one of the most lethal weapons of the 18th century, and an extremely pointy one at that. For a soldier to safely suspend a bayonet from either a waist or shoulder belt, a stout scabbard was needed to house the blade.

A deeply punched "Crown GR" mark denotes this particular triangular bayonet scabbard as the onetime property of the British Crown. Made of thick brown leather, its wide face is incised with linear decoration and it is stitched down the peak at the center of the back where the two narrow sides meet. The cast brass hook is of the usual form, but its sheet brass tip is an early American replacement.

While extremely common during the late colonial period, few intact examples of such scabbards survive. In stark contrast, fragments of these scabbards are amongst the most commonly found military items recovered by archaeologists from French & Indian and Revolutionary War sites.
Markings"Crown GR" stamped into the wide face of the scabbard about halfway down.