The Marxbrüder (Brotherhood of Saint Mark) were a German fencing guild founded in the 15th century. This box is hand carved with imagery taken from period fencing treatises and topped with the Lion of Saint Mark, the symbol of the Marxbrüder. The scrolls on the sides quote a verse from fencing grand master Johannes Liechtenauer, whose rhyming verse served as a mnemonic device to memorize lessons. This particular verse warns that the cowardly should learn no fencing, though it is more lyrical in the original language (Der schrickestu gerñ/kain uechtñ nÿmer gelerñ).
10.5” wide, 6.5” tall, 7.25” from front to back.
Historical Handcrafts 