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Old 3rd April 2015, 05:58 PM   #3
Jim McDougall
Arms Historian
 
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Route 66
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Sancar, nothing wrong with romanticism!! it is what propels the joy of collecting and studying the history of these weapons....as we always say, these arms can indeed talk to us
The thing about weapons is that their 'working lives' often exceed the normally recognized period of many familiar forms.

In this case, the hilt is a stirrup hilt of a British M1796 light cavalry sabre, which were profusely produced and in many cases remained in service decades after they were superceded by another pattern hilt in 1829. The blade, as astutely noted by Ibrahiim, is of an also profusely produced type from Germany, specifically Solingen workshops.

I would note that as far as I have known, the notion of 'battlefield repair' is most unlikely with most arms. Crude repairs are typically the work of less than skilled crafters who are 'recycling' available components often in efforts to equip forces in developing circumstances. These kinds of 'hatchet point' German blades were among well known forms used in Arabian context through the 19th century and even into the 20th.

In Arabia, it is well known that sabres were used well into the 20th century, long after technically obsolete in most other places. That is where the 'romanticism' can become well placed even in 'reworked' pieces like this.That hilt began its life used in the sabre of a British cavalryman, then at some point ended up probably with broken or unserviceable blade, which was replaced in a small, relatively unskilled circumstance, and furbished with this commonly available blade form, to be used once again in some probably obscure tribal setting.
Who knows for sure what true history may be guarded within this sword?
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