83 Ceremonial sword
Hungarian, 16th century
Partially gold plated silver
Purchased with the help of the Joint foundation, 1951
This sword from probably the 16th century, with a Hebrew inscription, was first shown at the National Millennial Exhibition in 1896. According to historical legends, the sword used to be the ceremonial sword of Mendel prefect, so the museum would have liked to obtain this object for its own collection from Count Géza Andrássy. There were long negotiations about the sword between the museum and the reknown aristocrat collector in the 1930s, but then the museum could only get hold of a photo of the sword. After the nationalization of private collections of the nobility and the annulment of the privileges of the nobility, the sword was purchased by the museum with the financial help of the Joint in 1951.