I'm renovating my wife's grandparents' old house, and I found this in the closet. Grandfather was born in 1928. He served in the Army. Any idea what this might be from?

Case closed Watson!

msechelski said:

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War trophy. Got it.

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Cool sword. Did he serve at 15/16?

Correction. He was born in 1926.

Makes sense. Cool find.

If he was born in 1926, that means he would have been drafted in 1944 sometime. I don't recall if they waited for potential draftees to finish HS or not. But by late 1944, there was a mandate from Congress that all troops receive a year's stateside training before being shipped overseas. So if he went to Europe, it likely would have been right as the war ended and/or occupation duty. Occupation duty was great for picking up souveniers.

Do you know when and where he served and/or what unit(s)?

I know he served in France and Germany. I'm sure I could dig up his records somewhere and find out more information.

It appears to be a saber vs a sword. Single thin blade. Used by horse cavalry with a slashing move as opponents to a stabbing move. Swords are heavy, double bladed while sabers are light.