Designed to fit a 45/70 Trapdoor Springfield Rifle, these are very rarely seen. Used on the M1873 Springfield trapdoor rifle that uses a regular ram rod.
An ingenious bayonet in the shape of a gardening trowel that when fitted to the muzzle of the rifle can double as an entrenching tool to dig in, or as a bayonet as the trowel's edges are sharp as is the point. The trowel bayonet was conceived to provide soldiers with a dual-purpose bayonet and entrenching tool. Following the U.S. Civil War, the conventional wisdom in the Army was that the bayonet was largely unnecessary and that soldiers should be individually-equipped to rapidly entrench without the need to bring entrenching tools forward by wagon. This was developed during the same period of American "multi-use" military experimentation that produced the Springfield Trapdoor ramrod and M1888 Entrenching Tool Knife.
The trowel blade is 10-inch long and 3 3/8 inches wide, with a reinforced spine and overall length of 14 1/4 inches. The blade has some areas of controlled rust and damage to the right cutting edge.
Used relic of the Indian Wars era ready to display!
