Solid half-basket hilted sword owned by the Admirals Phipps Hornby. The hilt consists of a brass-gilt solid half-basket with a crown and anchor badge, a folding flap with a hole drilled to engage the stud on the top locket of the scabbard. A sword-knot of the 1891 pattern is fitted through the holes on the guard.

The blade is slightly curved with a pipe-back and double-edged point. There is no decoration at all. The names and dates of the three Admirals Phipps Hornby are inscribed near the shoulder. The black leather scabbard has two lockets each with a ring at the back edge and a chape with a pointed shoe. All mounts are decorated with embossed acorns, oak leaves and threads. There is a stud on the top locket to engage with the folding flap. The blade inscriptions are '1785 Sir Phipps Hornby Admiral 1867', '1825 Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby Admiral of the Fleet 1895' and '1866 Robert S. Phipps Hornby Admiral 1956'. The top locket of the scabbard is engraved with 'WIDDOWSON/ & VEALE/ LATE SALTER/ GOLDSMITHS/ & SWORD CUTLERS/ 73 STRAND/ LONDON'.

This sword is part of the Phipps Hornby Collection, the donor was the son of R.S. Phipps Hornby. The sword was worn successively by: Admiral Sir Phipps Hornby GCB; Admiral of the Fleet Sir Geoffrey Thomas Phipps Hornby GCB; Admiral Robert Stewart Phipps Hornby CMG. (For careers of Sir P. & Sir G.T. see WPN1469 and WPN1470).
Robert S. Phipps Hornby became a Captain on 1 June 1903; a Rear-Admiral 15 May 1913; aVice-Admiral 11 March 1918 and died in 1956.

The sword was probably acquired by Admiral Phipps Hornby between 1835 (when Widowson & Veale took over from Salter) and 1846 (when Wilkinson blades became regulation). He became a Rear-Admiral in 1846 and could have had the scabbard altered to that of a flag officer although there is no sign on the top locket of a second ring having been fitted to conform to the 1847-56 pattern belt slings so the scabbard is probably post-1856. The chape is longer than the regulation 190mm. The sword-knot of 1891 pattern was probably fitted by Robert Stewart Phipps Hornby as Sir G.'s other sword (WPN1470) has its pre-1891 knot fitted. The crown anchor and badge is cast as a separate piece and riveted in place. The inscriptions on the blade are all by the same hand and therefore probably post-1956.

The museum received swords WPN1596 and WPN1597 of Commander Wyndham Mark Phipps Hornby, WPN1598 and WPN1599 which belonged to Sir WW Hornby KCB and also medals and gun models and ships crests (W88-22.1-.21).