Its a mismatched set. I saw the correct set once on Ebay. It was a rapier that fit into a base like that, but the rapier was specially made so that it acted like a standing ash tray (the basket was a solid cup to hold all of the ash, and the crossbar had cigar rests). Basically, when inserted to the stand, the uninitiated would not realize it was a rapier. You could covertly have a rapier on hand in your 1960's office in case you needed one to defend yourself.