US Type 1 Fencing Bayonet Made From Whale Tooth (Baleen)

In 1852-53, the Watervliet Arsenal in New York produced 1,500 fencing bayonets for the West Point Academy. These were made for practicing bayonet fencing with live opponents without risk of injury. They were comprised of a regular bayonet socket fitted with a holder and thumb screw for a “blade” made of whale baleen and a soft leather ball at the tip, filled with gutta percha or cork. The baleen (a pseudo-tooth from a filter-feeding whale) is a flexible and resilient material ideal for this sort of application, in many ways usable like we use polymers today. While the converted sockets are not too difficult to find today, intact complete bayonets are extremely rare. The apocryphal story is that hundreds were sold to Bannerman’s as surplus, but rats got into the barrels and ate all the baleen. Whoops!