Winchester m/95 bayo with very interesting provenance

[Jan]

Hi guys,

I accuired this very well kept Winchester m/95 bayonet today. The bayonet saw use in the Finnish civil war in 1918. The war was fought for the leadership and control of Finland between White Finland and Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (Red Finland) during the country's transition from a Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire to an independent state.

The bayonet was owned by Lennart Rafael Segerstråle (17 June 1892 – 11 April 1975) a renowned Swedish-speaking Finnish painter and graphic artist (seen to the lower left in the picture). He was best known for his murals and frescoes.

Lennart Segerstrale - Wikipedia

The dramatic experiences of the civil war made a great impact on Lennart Segerstråle who later returned to the traumatic experiences in his art. His older son died during the final battles of WW2 on the Karelian isthmus in the summer of 1944 (his firstborn had drowned in 1922).

The bayonet was handed over to me by the grandson of Lennart Segerstråle.


Best,

Jan

[bittaker]

Interesting presentation, Jan. Nice bayonet as well!!
Stig

[AZPhil]

I love the bayonet and the provenance behind it is fantastic.

Congrat's!!

Semper Fi
Phil