À clavier

Epee with guard sheet "à jour"

A vessel or guard sheet à clavier , also known as a piano hilt, is used when the obverse (outer) guard sheet of a rapier is bent downwards towards the blade, as was the case with civil servants' rapiers from the beginning of the 19th century to the 20th century was. The model was presumably the shell-shaped, bent guard leaves of the hunting knife .