Two north african knives

[Emanuel]

Hello,

The top one is a knife from Bou-Saada yes, but I don't recognize the second one.

Looking at older Bou-Saada knives I have the feeling they are derived from the Corsican and Genovese style of knives often called "vendetta knives". Almost identical shape and construction in some cases. I can see "Genwi" knives making it so far south since it was a stop over on the caravan routes, 250km just south of the major ports on the Mediterranean.

As to whether they are still produced in Bou-Saada, I don't know. The place was a major French tourist destination from the 1930s until independence so I think a great deal of them were made for the tourist trade there. We see a lot of these on e-bay with very poor quality craftsmanship. Thin wavy blades, excessive decoration, poorly carved hilts. I think the forged integral bolsters stopped being a feature when the tourist purpose was popularized and the sturdiness stopped being a requisite.

Emanuel