Jim, as you probably know, I also find the theory, based on Peter's "trust me bro" sources, that the saifs with conical hilts were only for show and dance, unconvincing. That is not to say they were not used for traditional dance. I am sure they were, but I also believe that they were an actual weapon, in a similar way takoubas and kakskaras were both weapon and a formal part of a man's dress. Here is some of my reasoning:
1) Almost all of these blades are imports and are heavily marked, whether in Europe or in imitation of European marks in order to suggest a certain standard of quality. If these were never intended for combat use, cheaper local blades/blade like pieces of steel would have sufficed. Why even put fullering on blades if they are never going to be pulled out of a scabbard?
2) These swords are present in drawings of local warriors, who also wear bucklers and matchlocks. We also see them in pictures of bodyguards. It seems odd that the only non-functional piece of equipment on a warrior would the side arm, or that bodyguards would not be armed.
3) The kattara, the curved version, has the same kind of hilt. Curved swords being non-traditional, why would the locals waste valuable imported sabres on hilts that would not be functional? Are curved swords even used in traditional dance?
4) The lanyards going through the holes in the pommels are intended to prevent the sword from slipping out of the hand. Such use cannot be during the dance, when the swords are thrown in the air, so the lanyard would be completely redundant unless these swords were also intended to serve as weapons.
5) A German postcard with trophies from the Arab Uprising in Tanganyika shows a Zanzibari nimcha, a southern Yemeni silver hilted saif and one of these saifs with cylindrical hilts, along with a whole bunch of daggers. So we know at least some were used in battle.
By second half of the 19th century, Zanzibar authority was fragmenting and whatever forces the Sultan had in East Africa were completely ineffective. However, slavers like Tippu Tip (posing with a kattara for photos) were engaged in skirmishes and even some pitched battles in the heart of the continent, and apart from their firearms they most certainly used edged weapons as well. If they did not use conical hilted saifs, what did they use then? Ancient saif Yarubis from the 18th century and other, even earlier relics?
When I look at these saifs, I see both a weapon and a vital accessory to any man's dress, sometimes used in traditional dance. Parallels can be made with the takouba. Burton questioned how effective they would be, from his Western point of view, just like some other Western travelers questioned the effectiveness of the highly embellished flintlock pistoles men in the Balkans wore in their belts. Sure, a Martini Henry is better than a matchlock, but if we are not dismissing the matchlock as an actual weapon before being replaced by more modern firearms, then we should not dismiss the conical hilted saif just because it was obsolete in the context of modern 19th century warfare.
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