Dear Kubur,
My main reference was on-site research in the Suq al Hadad in Kassala, Sudan in March 1984, associated field notes and written up in my Social Economics of Small Craft Production, the Sword and Knife Makers of Kassaka, Eastern Sudan. (Available from EAA's reference section) I also used G. Reed's 1987 “Kaskara from Northern Darfur, Sudan” in The Journal of The Arms & Armour Society and Lee Jones' “Kaskara of Sudanic Africa”. I inspected and photographed the as-Shinqiti Collection in-situ at the Univ.of Khartoum where I taught a semester in 1984-85. I also used photographs from a couple of my own kaskaras. Most of the other photo references were identified from a Google image search on “Kaskara Silver Grips”. Most of the good stuff was from our own Vikingsword threads and photos. Other photos were from various web sites I incorporated under ”fair use” and did not reference other than their URL address as a live link. I won't mention all the other references, including Sudan Notes and Records articles and the Jay Spauldin works of the Funj Kingdom I reviewed but didn't find anything relevant. I even delved into siting references into the al-Kaid comet or star with a tail; nothing to tie a passage in late Funj times.
If I missed any important or relevent reference, please let me know. Anything to expand our knowledge will be helpful.
Regards,
Ed
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