Sudanese spears of Mahdist Period 1881-1899

[G. Mansfield]

Thank you Ed for posting this article! I will add it to my records for future reference.

Tim, your spear is similar to one that I have. From the decoration notchings at the base, I believe it to be from the Shilluk and certainly old enough to fit into this time frame of the Mahdist period. The Kalifa spanned large swaths of Sudan (Mahdist map), so I will post it for relevancy and comparison. It is only the spearhead, missing the shaft, with a total length of 25 3/4 (Spearhead).

Upon a closer look at the picture posted by both Jim and Tim (Baggara Emir), It looks like he may be carrying an arm dagger suspended from the shoulder rather than looped around the left arm in typical manner. I have never seen them worn this way. Can anybody else confirm this? It is the hourgalss shaped arm dagger form rather than the typical disc- shaped pommel often attributed to Khartoum and Omdurman. I will post one from my collection also for comparison (Arm dagger). It is a very old example, possibly pre-mahdi, although missing the arm loop.

-Geoffrey