Interesting Saif with Provenance for Sharing

Kubur · 25th June 2015, 07:32 AM

Hi,
Very nice Arabian sayf! For me, your blade is French or German, very late 18th or first part of the 19th c. Do you have some marks on the blade?
Best,
Kubur

A.alnakkas · 25th June 2015, 05:19 PM

Hey Kubur,

There are no marks on the blade. Though this means little as Saudis often polish blades until its bright, removing etchings and marks in the process.

I thought German first, but are German blades made very stiff? I had German blades in this shape and different shapes as well, never this stiff!

Kubur · 25th June 2015, 06:25 PM

I have an early Napoleonic blade almost like yours. But I don't know if the French continued to produce this kind of blade during the 19th c. ...

A.alnakkas · 25th June 2015, 08:13 PM

Can I see the sabre, Kubur?

Check this post, I have posted a saif in it with a Persian blade that has 'European' features.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18436

Kubur · 25th June 2015, 08:49 PM

It's not a nice photo, but better than nothing. If it's really an early French sword, then I know exactly how the blade went to SA.
Best,
Kubur

A.alnakkas · 25th June 2015, 10:38 PM

thats a nice sabre! I actually had a saif with such a french blade.. had some Arabic script on the spine with Sun and Moon motifs on the blade... It was European likely used in an ottoman sword, then it was dressed in Arabian style. Was very different from this one though, wider and more flexible and also different fullering.

Jim McDougall · 25th June 2015, 11:11 PM

To me the hollow ground sabre blade in this example (which looks very much like the examples seen in Elgood's 'Arabian Arms & Armour) seems very 'Solingen'. It does seem like an early 19th century hussars blade, and these seem to have been very prevalent in trade circumstances throughout Red Sea and North African trade in Egypt. The Arabian presence in Aden of course along with the Condominium in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan also may have accounted for German (as well as French) blades in the opening years of 20th c.

The French sabre shown illustrates the much wider fullering seen on these Klingenthal type blades.

Kubur, interesting comment on the possible entry of French blade into Arabia, and while my allusion to the French presence in North Africa mentions the condominium, obviously the profound presence in Saharan regions throughout the 19th c. is another possibility. I'd like to know more on that, can you elaborate?

Either way, I feel pretty certain the blade here is European, and probably earlier 19th c. Very nice sa'if.
But I am curious......Lofty, you say these were not to be 'gifted'. I have always been under the impression that sa'if were indeed a highly honored gift diplomatically, and especially in these early years of our alliance with Saudi Arabia.
Best regards,
Jim

25th June 2015, 08:49 PM	#5
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	It's not a nice photo, but better than nothing. If it's really an early French sword, then I know exactly how the blade went to SA. Best, Kubur Attached Images

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25th June 2015, 07:32 AM	#1
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	Hi, Very nice Arabian sayf! For me, your blade is French or German, very late 18th or first part of the 19th c. Do you have some marks on the blade? Best, Kubur

25th June 2015, 05:19 PM	#2
A.alnakkas Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuwait Posts: 1,340	Hey Kubur, There are no marks on the blade. Though this means little as Saudis often polish blades until its bright, removing etchings and marks in the process. I thought German first, but are German blades made very stiff? I had German blades in this shape and different shapes as well, never this stiff!

25th June 2015, 06:25 PM	#3
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	I have an early Napoleonic blade almost like yours. But I don't know if the French continued to produce this kind of blade during the 19th c. ...

25th June 2015, 08:13 PM	#4
A.alnakkas Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuwait Posts: 1,340	Can I see the sabre, Kubur? Check this post, I have posted a saif in it with a Persian blade that has 'European' features. http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18436

25th June 2015, 10:38 PM	#6
A.alnakkas Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuwait Posts: 1,340	thats a nice sabre! I actually had a saif with such a french blade.. had some Arabic script on the spine with Sun and Moon motifs on the blade... It was European likely used in an ottoman sword, then it was dressed in Arabian style. Was very different from this one though, wider and more flexible and also different fullering.

25th June 2015, 11:11 PM	#7
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,200	To me the hollow ground sabre blade in this example (which looks very much like the examples seen in Elgood's 'Arabian Arms & Armour) seems very 'Solingen'. It does seem like an early 19th century hussars blade, and these seem to have been very prevalent in trade circumstances throughout Red Sea and North African trade in Egypt. The Arabian presence in Aden of course along with the Condominium in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan also may have accounted for German (as well as French) blades in the opening years of 20th c. The French sabre shown illustrates the much wider fullering seen on these Klingenthal type blades. Kubur, interesting comment on the possible entry of French blade into Arabia, and while my allusion to the French presence in North Africa mentions the condominium, obviously the profound presence in Saharan regions throughout the 19th c. is another possibility. I'd like to know more on that, can you elaborate? Either way, I feel pretty certain the blade here is European, and probably earlier 19th c. Very nice sa'if. But I am curious......Lofty, you say these were not to be 'gifted'. I have always been under the impression that sa'if were indeed a highly honored gift diplomatically, and especially in these early years of our alliance with Saudi Arabia. Best regards, Jim