Art Institute of Chicago

Smallsword for a Child

French

Date

c. 1670

Medium

Steel, iron, gold, silver, and wood

Culture

France

Department

Applied Arts of Europe

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Court culture dictated that young noble children were expected to be dressed like adults, and this led to the production of scaled-down fashion accessories like smallswords. The size of this sword suggests it was made for a boy of between four and six. A seemingly dangerous proposition, children’s swords were often tied firmly into their scabbards so that they wouldn’t hurt themselves or someone else.

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