France, III Republic. First War Re-Design of the M1886 Lebel Épée Needle Point Bayonet

This bayonet features a 517 mm long distinct cruciform Épée blade with needle point and is very sharp at the tip, magnetic, with a dark finish, unique for the time as most bayonets were using a knife-style, marked with a "B" inside a circle and a "G" inside a circle below on the reverse ricasso, the blade embedded into the heavy steel crossguard that is designed with a ring for placement upon the barrel of a rifle at one end, while the other end has a flat end where the original design adopted a quillon but was now re-designed in 1916 without one, the flat end marked with what appears to be an "M" beside the number "81782", thumb press release at its base where it butts the non-magnetic nickel handle, the pommel with a flair design, marked with a "P" beside the mortise slot and is marked "114" on its flat end, the latter of which is magnetic as the steel portion has been fed through the core of the handle and is visible as such, the bayonet measuring 634 mm in length. The accompanying scabbard with a black finish and incorporating a tubular design, the end point finished in a ball finial, the throat end with a horseshoe-shaped bracket with bar just below the opening, with a "B" visible and most of the code numbers illegible due to having experienced multiple scratches and contact marks, the scabbard measuring 530 mm in length. The blade, crossguard and handle exhibit a few scratches and contact marks, the scabbard with surface rust and wear present throughout. Near fine.