Yemeni (?) Sword for ID and Comments

ariel · 3rd January 2019, 01:49 AM

The blade looks kaskara-ish to me.

Similar blades served faithfully as genuine articles for European fakers of old crusaders swords. Why not as imitations of pre-islamic Arabian or Mamluk?

TVV · 3rd January 2019, 06:33 AM

Stu, thank you for your comment. North African is an interesting possibility. I honestly could not find many examples of North African arms with circle decoration - the motives tend to be mostly zig-zag or triangular, which according to Spring has the symbolic purpose of warding off the evil eye. That being said, I did find a Tunisian sword with a circle and dot decoration on the hilt (not sure of the image source, I believe it was some auction), as well as one sboula from Wolfgang's site. it is also appearing on Tunisian khanjars, as shown by Kubur and one sold by Oriental Arms. The circle and circle and dot tend to be shared among a lot of regions and cultures, so it is hard to base origin just on that. I am not discounting a North African possibility, just need to collect more evidence.

Ariel has a point too: this could be a one off example made for who knows what purpose. It may well have been meant as a souvenir to be sold to tourists, which is usually the most likely explanation for unusual examples.

Teodor

kahnjar1 · 3rd January 2019, 07:24 AM

Also on (particularly) Moroccan powder flasks........ The "circle and dot" is not of course just found in North Africa but also on Turkish and Balkan arms, though I doubt your sword is of high enough quality to have originated there.
Stu

Kubur · 3rd January 2019, 10:10 AM

The hilt and scabbard are very yemeni to me.
BUT as said previously it might be some bedouin thing, Arabia or Sinai?
The recent nails are ugly, what about the other side of the hilt?
If i was you I will clean the hilt and the brass shape of the scabbard to check if they are the same style, then you'll know if it was rehilted recently or not.

TVV · 4th January 2019, 12:58 AM

Thank you for the additional responses. Yes, a rough, rural bedouin dress is a possibility. I believe the hilt, which is made of two parts soldered together and the scabbard chape are from the same alloy (possibly the same sheet of metal): I will try to take a better picture of them next to each other over the weekend. There could be a wooden core inside the hilt, hard to tell.

The rivets go through on both sides and, aesthetics aside, hold the blade to the hilt pretty well without any movement.

3rd January 2019, 06:33 AM	#2
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,660	Stu, thank you for your comment. North African is an interesting possibility. I honestly could not find many examples of North African arms with circle decoration - the motives tend to be mostly zig-zag or triangular, which according to Spring has the symbolic purpose of warding off the evil eye. That being said, I did find a Tunisian sword with a circle and dot decoration on the hilt (not sure of the image source, I believe it was some auction), as well as one sboula from Wolfgang's site. it is also appearing on Tunisian khanjars, as shown by Kubur and one sold by Oriental Arms. The circle and circle and dot tend to be shared among a lot of regions and cultures, so it is hard to base origin just on that. I am not discounting a North African possibility, just need to collect more evidence. Ariel has a point too: this could be a one off example made for who knows what purpose. It may well have been meant as a souvenir to be sold to tourists, which is usually the most likely explanation for unusual examples. Teodor Attached Images

3rd January 2019, 07:24 AM	#3
kahnjar1 Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: CHRISTCHURCH NEW ZEALAND Posts: 2,786	Also on (particularly) Moroccan powder flasks........ The "circle and dot" is not of course just found in North Africa but also on Turkish and Balkan arms, though I doubt your sword is of high enough quality to have originated there. Stu Attached Images

3rd January 2019, 01:49 AM	#1
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	The blade looks kaskara-ish to me. Similar blades served faithfully as genuine articles for European fakers of old crusaders swords. Why not as imitations of pre-islamic Arabian or Mamluk?

3rd January 2019, 10:10 AM	#4
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	The hilt and scabbard are very yemeni to me. BUT as said previously it might be some bedouin thing, Arabia or Sinai? The recent nails are ugly, what about the other side of the hilt? If i was you I will clean the hilt and the brass shape of the scabbard to check if they are the same style, then you'll know if it was rehilted recently or not.

4th January 2019, 12:58 AM	#5
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,660	Thank you for the additional responses. Yes, a rough, rural bedouin dress is a possibility. I believe the hilt, which is made of two parts soldered together and the scabbard chape are from the same alloy (possibly the same sheet of metal): I will try to take a better picture of them next to each other over the weekend. There could be a wooden core inside the hilt, hard to tell. The rivets go through on both sides and, aesthetics aside, hold the blade to the hilt pretty well without any movement.