  
  About the Artwork
  
  
  An etched calendar spanning the years 1576 through 1579 covers both sides of this sword blade. The days of each month correspond to the feast days dedicated to Catholic Saints. Unlike a fragile book, a sturdy sword traveled alongside its owner as an essential piece of equipment and fashion accessory. Adding a calendar to this important and resilient possession allowed the owner to follow the religious cycle of the year and know which saint to pray to for aid or special protection on days when he faced danger. Although this is one of very few calendar sword blades to survive from the late 1500s, it would have been a useful devotional tool and a significant status symbol.
  
  
  Title
  Calendar Sword Blade
  
  
  Artwork Date
  1576
  
  Artist
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  Life Dates
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  Nationality
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events.
  Some definitions include:
  Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation.
  
  
  
  German
  
  
  
  Culture
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group.
  
  
  
  
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  Medium
  Steel (hilt is a modern replacement)
  
  
  Dimensions
  Overall: 44 1/2 &Atilde;&#151; 11 1/2 &Atilde;&#151; 5 1/4 inches (113 &Atilde;&#151; 29.2 &Atilde;&#151; 13.3 cm)
  Overall (blade): 35 inches (88.9 cm)
  
  
  Classification
  Arms and Armor
  
  
  Department
  European Sculpture and Dec Arts
  
  
  Credit
  Gift of Ralph R. Hotchkiss
  
  
  
  Accession Number
  
  
  
  This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection.
  Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum&acirc;&#128;&#153;s holdings.
  For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems&acirc;&#128;&#148;no longer assigned&acirc;&#128;&#148;that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups.
  
  
  
  56.186
  
  
  Copyright
  Public Domain
  
  
  
