Solid half-basket hilted sword, which belonged to Captain John Park Sanders (died 1848). The hilt of the sword consists of a gilt solid half-basket guard with raised bars and the badge of the Honourable East India Company. There is a hinged flap on the inside of the guard. The sword has a gilt lion's-head pommel and back-piece, the mane extending one third of the length of the back-piece. The white fish-skin grip is bound with three gilt wires. The steel blade is pipe-backed and slightly curved. Both the obverse and reverse of the blade are engraved with acanthus leaves on the shoulder and are much pitted. The black leather scabbard has two gilt lockets with rings and chape. The lockets are ornamented with lines. The chape is a rather amateur replacement with the shoe extending to the reverse side only.

Captain John Park Sanders (died 1848) entered the Indian Navy as a Midshipman on the 27th May 1825 and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on the 18th February 1830. He became a Captain on the 13th September 1847 and was taken seriously ill in 1848 and had to relinquish his command. He died at sea off Malta on his way home. Much of his career was devoted to surveying.