British P1888 Bayonet
Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 4:55 am
Sometimes being a nice guy pays off.
GF wanted to go to junk shop to look at "vintage fashion accessories", aka junk. How about I listen to the radio while GF browses? No go. I have to go into the junk shop with her. "It will only be a few minutes".
There's lots of junk. I see what looks like a bayonet amidst all the other junk in the display cases. It's not familiar to me. It looks old and pitted, but I notice the "VR" under the crown, so probably a product of "Victoria Regina's" empire. I negotiate with the proprietor.
GF doesn't find anything that interests her, so she walks out empty handed. I walk out with the bayonet.
Turns out it's a Mk1 version of a British Pattern 1888 bayonet for the Long Lee Enfield or Long Lee Metford rifles.
The "crown over VR" is, of course, HM Queen Victoria's cipher. The "9 '97" underneath the Queen's cipher is the date of manufacture, September of 1897, so this could have seen service in the 2nd Boer War.
On the other side of the blade is the "Broad arrow" over "EFD", which indicates the blade was made for British Ordnance by Enfield. Underneath the "EFD" is a small crown over "34" over "E", which I believe is some Enfield inspectors mark. Underneath the "E" is an "X", which is the proof mark that the blade passed some flex test.
On the spine of the blade is a crown over "16" over "E", which I believe is another inspectors mark. Further down on the spine is another crown. Maybe an acceptance mark?
On the back of the blade tang is another crown over "10" over "M". Maybe a unit marking?
On the bayonet mount, there is "569", which is probably just a rack number. I don't believe these were serialized.
I don't own a Long Lee Enfield or Long Lee Metford, nor do I have any plans to do so. Since all the bayonets I own fit on rifles I own, this bayonet will likely end up as trading fodder for something more useful to me at some ELGS. Worst case, it goes on Ebay. Anyway, a neat piece of history.
GF wanted to go to junk shop to look at "vintage fashion accessories", aka junk. How about I listen to the radio while GF browses? No go. I have to go into the junk shop with her. "It will only be a few minutes".
There's lots of junk. I see what looks like a bayonet amidst all the other junk in the display cases. It's not familiar to me. It looks old and pitted, but I notice the "VR" under the crown, so probably a product of "Victoria Regina's" empire. I negotiate with the proprietor.
GF doesn't find anything that interests her, so she walks out empty handed. I walk out with the bayonet.
Turns out it's a Mk1 version of a British Pattern 1888 bayonet for the Long Lee Enfield or Long Lee Metford rifles.
The "crown over VR" is, of course, HM Queen Victoria's cipher. The "9 '97" underneath the Queen's cipher is the date of manufacture, September of 1897, so this could have seen service in the 2nd Boer War.
On the other side of the blade is the "Broad arrow" over "EFD", which indicates the blade was made for British Ordnance by Enfield. Underneath the "EFD" is a small crown over "34" over "E", which I believe is some Enfield inspectors mark. Underneath the "E" is an "X", which is the proof mark that the blade passed some flex test.
On the spine of the blade is a crown over "16" over "E", which I believe is another inspectors mark. Further down on the spine is another crown. Maybe an acceptance mark?
On the back of the blade tang is another crown over "10" over "M". Maybe a unit marking?
On the bayonet mount, there is "569", which is probably just a rack number. I don't believe these were serialized.
I don't own a Long Lee Enfield or Long Lee Metford, nor do I have any plans to do so. Since all the bayonets I own fit on rifles I own, this bayonet will likely end up as trading fodder for something more useful to me at some ELGS. Worst case, it goes on Ebay. Anyway, a neat piece of history.
