French & Indian War Modified Bayonet, recovered at Battle of Lake George, NY (ON HOLD)

This is another nice early piece coming out of a 60-year collection of French & Indian War, Revolutionary War, and War of 1812 artifacts. Being offered is a French & Indian War bayonet. It has an overall length of 14 ½” and the socket has a 1” diameter. This bayonet may have been longer, but the tip has been hammered flat, maybe to use as a digging tool. It was recovered years ago at the Battle of Lake George.

The battle was fought on September 8, 1755. British forces of 1,500 soldiers and 200 Mohawk Indians under the command of William Johnson defeated a much larger allied French and Indian force of 3,500 under German General Baron Dieskau.

In June 1759, British General Jeffrey Amherst arrived in Lake George and soon proceeded to build a new fort at the lake. The site was the high ground east of the ruins of Fort William Henry, which had been destroyed by the French in 1757. A provincial officer described the fort as "the walls [are] about 14 feet thick built of stone and lime."

This collection began in the late 1950s and was created by private acquisitions, closed museums, diggers and lake divers. The collector meticulously displayed and cataloged every piece along with its provenance. His markings were crude at the time, but now they have proved to be very important.

This is the first time this bayonet has been on the open market, and it is truly a great piece of early American History. It definitely merits a place in an advanced collection or museum. As with all the pieces in this esteemed collection, a Certificate of Authenticity will be included.