Knights of the Golden Eagle Horstmann Sword

This sword was once part of the rituals of an organization known as The Knights of the Gold Eagle (KGE). The group was founded in 1872 and though it once had as many as 20,000 members their existence has diminished considerably. They encouraged Christian values in everyday life and one of its original functions was to find employment for its members and aid them while unemployed. Many of its workings had a military slant to them, as their internal machinations, such as the titles of various members (especially those in key or esteemed positions) were based largely on the legends surrounding the crusades. One unfortunate piece of history that still shadows the KGE is that one of their members was responsible for the assassination of President McKinley. The blade of this sword is of German make, crafted by the Solingen firm of Weyersberg-Kirschbaum and bears its ark. The rest of the piece was made by the Horstmann company. It has an intricately decorated brass scabbard and a finely etched blade. The piece likely dates to the 1880’s and has a 29 inch blade.
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