Ariel:
I agree that there could easily be some mingling of styles between the kukri and sossun patta. Both are recurved blades, and I could see a Rajput warrior saying something like, "I want a sossun patta that is a bit shorter than usual for close quarter work, but heavier in the belly--a bit like that one from Nepal you showed me the other day, only longer." These types of discussion must have gone on for centuries among men-at-arms of all races and nations. The search for a perfect weapon for a particular task must have been never ending, borrowing from here and there trying to get it right.
The Mongols, of course, unhesitatingly adopted whatever they thought was useful, simply absorbing (and being absorbed by) all they conquered. Since we are dealing with a Mughal (Mongol) influenced weapon in the sossun patta, I'm sure their instincts would have been to modify and improve it any way that seemed useful.
Ian
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