Old Nimcha for Info and to share

[JoeCanada42]

Could the blade also be locally forged in the Maghreb/ morocco, or an imported blade?
the fullers look wonky...

and the quillon is definitely the most primitive ive seen on a nimcha, gots a cool look though.

[JoeCanada42]

has anyone ever seen one of the nimchas made en mass for the siege of Malta?
this sword seems made more for function than for show like some fancy adorned nimchas.

i also get the interpretation the symbols on this blade , were put there to imbue it with functional properties, not as a stasus symbol or decoration.

i figure this squiggly line is for cutting,
the other symbol on opposite side of blade for puncturing /thrusting,
and the scabbard symbol for protection.

how does one date this sword? forgive me i am typing this response and didn't take note of who, but someone said 19C . sounds fair enough but how was this determined I am curious?

Thanks for any input

[TVV]

Originally Posted by JoeCanada42

has anyone ever seen one of the nimchas made en mass for the siege of Malta?

how does one date this sword? forgive me i am typing this response and didn't take note of who, but someone said 19C . sounds fair enough but how was this determined I am curious?

Thanks for any input

The nimcha as a form does not seem to have existed prior to the 16th century, and we are talking late 16th century at best. The nimchas with good provenance that exist in museum collections were captured from Barbary pirates in the mid 17th century, and some as late as the 18th century. There is one nimcha of very high quality in the Hofburg armory in Vienna that Eric Claude has dated to the 16th century, though no reasoning for that dating is provided other than the blade is an old European broadsword blade. Another nimcha in the same museum is a better studied form from the 17th/18th centuries, and I suspect both may date from that period. If someone knows of an earlier example, I would love to see it. The reason I am typing all this is to show that there may not have been many, or any nimchas during the siege of Malta in 1565.

When it comes to dating swords, in the absence of a strong provenance or a date on the blade or the fittings, the only option is to do it by comparing the features of the sword to other examples. This is where the forum search function can be extremely helpful.

[Kubur]

I agree 100% with the above

And I will add that no elements on your sword can support an early date, 18th or 17th c. So your sword must be late 19th c or even early 20th c.

Your quillons are a bit flat and crude, not the typical water drops from the 19thc.

So either your sword is Berber tribal 19th c. or it's a basic nimcha from the early 20th c.

I vote for the tribal nimcha with local engravings on the blade.

[JoeCanada42]

thanks TVV & Kubur , I did see many Nimchas on this forum, even the thread with the many Nimchas in the museum. there was a flyssa sold recently by the same person i acquired my Nimcha from, and the flyssa had the same red number markings, so they must have some connection, and I am quite certain my sword is Berber also.

I am just trying to to learn how the age of a nimcha is estimated. i am still unaware of the specific attributes the older vesions would have, besides the rhino horn and being less primitive in look. but because my nimcha looked primitive i thought it could be older,. I will try to take a look at those nimchas you suggested with the provenance.

I read about the seige of Malta somewhere while researching Nimchas and I though , I would like to see what one that old looks like... so ya thanks TVV

[TVV]

The materials used are not necessarily a good indicator of age. There are some great rhino hilt examples from the 19th century. The shape of the grip and the guard are more important. Yours are both typical of Moroccan swords from the 19th century. Fortunately, there are a lot of pictures from the 19th centuries of this type of hilt, as well as examples captured by the French and the Spanish in their colonial military conflicts in the area following the Berlin Congress. I am attaching some Spanish trophies. If those were from the Rif War, it would date them to the 1920s.

[JoeCanada42]

thanks for more input, Those are very nice swords, TVV, with what looks like Rhino , prestige prizes i would think, while my sword appears less fancy to put it nicely, which makes me think maybe the user was more likely to be carrying an older sword.

i did see many with similar bone handles as mine and i could attach a photo, again a much nicer sword.