Antiques Roadshow expert compares damaged sword to | TV Shows

When asked why the inscription was placed there, she admitted she had “no idea”.

Eledge continued: “Well, to find that out, we look at the letter.”

He read: “‘He writes home from Raccoon Mountain, Georgia, on December 3, 1863 and he writes home that ‘A ball’, meaning a bullet, ‘hit my sword while in the scabbard.’ ‘I cannot get the sword out. I will send it home to you.'”

Eledge explained: “December 3 was only a few days after the Battle of Lookout Mountain and the reason he put the inscription there, when we turn the sword over, that thing got slammed.”

He further elaborated: “It hit that scabbard so hard, it drove the scabbard into the sword and no matter how hard you try, you cannot pull that sword out of there.

“I don’t know what was going on that day but there’s something else that’s interesting about this. He knew how to put that sword in the scabbard.

“Something was going on crazy around him, because he put the sword in backwards. Then it was hit. It probably saved at least his leg.”

He further elaborated that the indentation most likely came from a large caliber musket ball or a canister ball.

They continued: “But no matter what it was, you can imagine the force it would have taken to put an indentation in that. And matter of fact, if we look at the bottom, it blew the whole edge of the scabbard out.”

Wilbur served as a lieutenant in early 1863, remaining with the regiment until September 24, 1864.

Eledge confirmed it was the “correct sword” for his rank, given the brass handle and floral design which indicates that it is a foot officer’s sword and that it has an iron scabbard with a steel blade.

“And that’s one thing that lets us know the ferocity that the bullet that hit the sword had, because you don’t just bend iron like that.

“As a group, this is something that would need to be insured for about $5,000.”

The guest’s eyes widened as she responded: “Wow. Really? Boy, that’s amazing.”

The expert added: “The sword if it didn’t have the bullet strike and we didn’t have the other documentation, this sword would be worth about $750 to $1,000.”

“So it makes a world of difference that we know who, what, when, where and why.”

Despite these comments, the guest then asked if the sword could be fixed and Eledge blankly responded: “Oh fixed? That would be like spray-painting the Mona Lisa.”

She let out a chuckle, saying “Oh, OK”, as Eledge elaborated: “That’s what makes this sword so special. It needs nothing.”