[CharlesS]

Originally Posted by AhmedH

Salaams CharlesS,

Here's another attempt to read the inscriptions on your sword from another person:

"Yes, the part at the bottom of the inscription is straight and easy to read. The problem is in the part at the top. This part is deliberately meant to be cryptic. Perhaps, to help decrypt it, the number 66 is given underneath it. Which alphabet, Greek or Arabic, was the reference for the inscriber (as far as numerical values of the alphabet)? Could 60 be also 30+30, 40+20, etc.? Finding answers to these questions may help.

Most likely this part of the inscription is written in Arabic characters, and is supposed to be read left to right. Left to right, it starts with الر , then comes تا , and finally comes با . "Al rataba" is a word in Arabic that describes the actions of some people, especially when these actions are routine. But be ware that this reading is a guess. There may be other readings."

Hope this helps!

As ever,
Ahmed Helal Hussein

Thanks very much Ahmed! This is very interesting stuff.