Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Jim McDougall · 19th May 2017, 05:10 AM

Clement, welcome to our forum, and you have given us a keen opportunity to see one of the nicest examples of the 'wedding nimcha' I have yet seen!
The term for these is most misleading, as these were actually 'ceremonial' or dress accoutrements, not simply for weddings or such events.

It is unusual to see one of these 'nimcha' style hilts with a flyssa blade, and I think you are right in that this one probably dates in the latter 19th c.
The quality of the mounts and blade are remarkable.

The flyssa itself is the sword of Kabylia in these regions in Algeria (said to have been named for the Iflyssen tribe Berbers who are believed to have been early makers of these). These long, needle pointed blade swords pretty much dropped off in production toward the later years of the 19th c. and these smaller dagger type examples perhaps became worn much as the koummya it seems as there was a great deal of diffusion in the Maghrebi coastal areas.

Stone (1935, p.234) describes the flyssa as the sword of the Kabyles of Morocco. It is believed that this attribution, when Kabylia is actually in Algeria, has to do with the connection with the Malakite Rite of Islam I Morocco. The five point star (Star of Solomon) which represents the Five Pillars of Islam is interestingly represented in the mounts of this dagger. That Star is since 1915 seen on the red flag of Morocco.

Therefore, a dagger of quality in Maghrebi nimcha mounts and Moroccan influenced Star of Solomon motif with Algerian Kabyle blade.

19th May 2017, 05:10 AM	#5
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 9,747	Clement, welcome to our forum, and you have given us a keen opportunity to see one of the nicest examples of the 'wedding nimcha' I have yet seen! The term for these is most misleading, as these were actually 'ceremonial' or dress accoutrements, not simply for weddings or such events. It is unusual to see one of these 'nimcha' style hilts with a flyssa blade, and I think you are right in that this one probably dates in the latter 19th c. The quality of the mounts and blade are remarkable. The flyssa itself is the sword of Kabylia in these regions in Algeria (said to have been named for the Iflyssen tribe Berbers who are believed to have been early makers of these). These long, needle pointed blade swords pretty much dropped off in production toward the later years of the 19th c. and these smaller dagger type examples perhaps became worn much as the koummya it seems as there was a great deal of diffusion in the Maghrebi coastal areas. Stone (1935, p.234) describes the flyssa as the sword of the Kabyles of Morocco. It is believed that this attribution, when Kabylia is actually in Algeria, has to do with the connection with the Malakite Rite of Islam I Morocco. The five point star (Star of Solomon) which represents the Five Pillars of Islam is interestingly represented in the mounts of this dagger. That Star is since 1915 seen on the red flag of Morocco. Therefore, a dagger of quality in Maghrebi nimcha mounts and Moroccan influenced Star of Solomon motif with Algerian Kabyle blade. Last edited by Jim McDougall; 19th May 2017 at 05:30 AM.