Antique and rare German academic sword “Mensur”. Germany, second half 19th century (I believe 1860/1880) Total length 107 cm, blade 85 cm. Mensur (from Latin mensura = measure) is a traditional ritual combat, also called "student" or "academic" duel, which is still practiced today by some student fraternities in Austria, Germany and Switzerland student, and to a lesser extent even in Kosovo, Estonia, Lithuania and Flanders. The peculiarity of this type of fighting consists not so much in wanting to injure or defeat the opponent, but rather to demonstrate courage in facing danger and injuries without moving back or showing fear: thus, the fighting could leave scars on the face, which were considered a source of pride and displayed as marks of distinction. Shipping to non-EU countries will be performed from Switzerland.