The Swordsman by Hugo Lederer is the iconic male sculpture that exists at the Breslau University cast in 1901. It is said the sculpture was a warning to the students not to gamble as one could be left naked with only one's sword. The bronze was originally cast in two sizes by The Martin & Piltzing Foundry of Berlin in 1901. The present model being the smaller of the two Piltzing casts and the larger being used as fountain model in Breslau while the present as a garden sculpture is numbered 5, with a warm dark green and brown patina. Two later castings were under taken by Gladenbeck foundry in the 1930's but these sizes measured only 15 and 22 inches high and are table top models that have non of the subtlety and softness of the Piltzing originals. The present sculpture is signed HUGO LEDERER and numbered 5 with the inscription symbol for Martin & Piltzing Foundry of Berlin.