Questions on Nimcha

Jim McDougall · 28th January 2007, 05:51 PM

Hi Fenris,
The mounts on this 'nimcha' are fantastic! and the old European trade blade is intriguing. It is interesting that, as you note, such a worn blade would be placed in such sumptuous mounts. However, European blades were of course the much sought after standard, and were typically remounted numerous times over thier working life, which of course extends well into the 20th century.
I have gone through quite a number of resources concerning those markings, and have not yet been successful in finding the 'quatrefoil' arrangement of these presumably Spanish (Cross of Santiago) type crosses, along with the crescent moon. I have however found similar crosses in linear arrangement over a crescent moon, also on a similar European trade blade, and on a nimcha of the form attributed typically to trade between Zanzibar and Arabia (Yemen specifically).
It seems worthy of note here that the 'four crosses' in that arrangement is seen in the regalia of Moorish Spain, on the hilt of the sword of Boabdil (Abu 'abd Allah Muhammed XII) , the last Emir before the fall of the Moors there. The very ornate Hispano-Moresque hilt has four crosses in its motif surrounding the eight pointed Islamic star. Perhaps this motif may have some significance in what appear to be applied by local armourer in the Maghreb. It seems plausible that that arrangement might have been known through trade items coming in from Spain, and may have provided influence.

The reprofiling of the blade seems to be perhaps intended to approach the fine point of the Berber flyssa, and it would seem that reprofiling blades is a practice not unusual for Berber armourers. This of course recalls the sabres that have been attributed to Berbers in Morocco with the heavily profiled tips on old British M1796 light cavalry blades, although the case on that Moroccan attribution remains somewhat speculative.

Outstanding piece!!!

All the best,
Jim

Emanuel · 28th January 2007, 06:19 PM

Hello,

About the quatrefoil mark, in my mind it is similar to that on the koummiya posted by berberdagger: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=3996

In which case the Raisuli link surfaces again.
Regards,
Emanuel

FenrisWolf · 28th January 2007, 06:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim McDougall

Hi Fenris,
The mounts on this 'nimcha' are fantastic! and the old European trade blade is intriguing. It is interesting that, as you note, such a worn blade would be placed in such sumptuous mounts. However, European blades were of course the much sought after standard, and were typically remounted numerous times over thier working life, which of course extends well into the 20th century.

Outstanding piece!!!

All the best,
Jim

Thanks, Jim! This is definitely the gem of my collection, and one of those cases of being in the right place at the right time. I'll be chortling over this one for years; I didn't even have anyone bidding against me! I think it may have been a case of other potential buyers not recognizing what they were seeing. The pics the seller posted were just poor enough that it could've been easy to dismiss the fancy metal work as tourist junk, which unfortunately many of the pieces coming out of Morocco are. What gave it away for me was the extra work that had been put into the harness rings. The spiralled metal combined with the thicker material cued me into taking a closer look and realizing that the fittings were not trash.

Thank you for the information as to the possible sources for the markings on the blade. I wish the initial buyer had asked more questions of the Berber family from whom he purchased it, or if he did, had recorded the information. All I have is that the family lived in the mountains, but which mountains? At this point it is of course nothing more than pure speculation, but I can only believe that the blade was some form of family heirloom with significance to its owner beyond its basic function. At least no other theory I can think of would explain the huge difference between the opulence of the fittings and the decidedly 'shaggy dog' nature of the blade.

I'm still figuring out how to get the best pics possible out of my little digital camera. As soon as I manage some better ones of the marks on the blade I'll post them, as well as a better series of pics of the engraving on the scabbard and hilt.

Thanks again for your help!
Fenris

Jim McDougall · 28th January 2007, 10:05 PM

Thanks very much Fenris! I'll be looking forward to those photos, and I'll keep looking for more on the markings, and if I can find other similar.
All the best,
Jim

28th January 2007, 05:51 PM	#1
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,192	Hi Fenris, The mounts on this 'nimcha' are fantastic! and the old European trade blade is intriguing. It is interesting that, as you note, such a worn blade would be placed in such sumptuous mounts. However, European blades were of course the much sought after standard, and were typically remounted numerous times over thier working life, which of course extends well into the 20th century. I have gone through quite a number of resources concerning those markings, and have not yet been successful in finding the 'quatrefoil' arrangement of these presumably Spanish (Cross of Santiago) type crosses, along with the crescent moon. I have however found similar crosses in linear arrangement over a crescent moon, also on a similar European trade blade, and on a nimcha of the form attributed typically to trade between Zanzibar and Arabia (Yemen specifically). It seems worthy of note here that the 'four crosses' in that arrangement is seen in the regalia of Moorish Spain, on the hilt of the sword of Boabdil (Abu 'abd Allah Muhammed XII) , the last Emir before the fall of the Moors there. The very ornate Hispano-Moresque hilt has four crosses in its motif surrounding the eight pointed Islamic star. Perhaps this motif may have some significance in what appear to be applied by local armourer in the Maghreb. It seems plausible that that arrangement might have been known through trade items coming in from Spain, and may have provided influence. The reprofiling of the blade seems to be perhaps intended to approach the fine point of the Berber flyssa, and it would seem that reprofiling blades is a practice not unusual for Berber armourers. This of course recalls the sabres that have been attributed to Berbers in Morocco with the heavily profiled tips on old British M1796 light cavalry blades, although the case on that Moroccan attribution remains somewhat speculative. Outstanding piece!!! All the best, Jim

28th January 2007, 06:19 PM	#2
Emanuel Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 1,242	Hello, About the quatrefoil mark, in my mind it is similar to that on the koummiya posted by berberdagger: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=3996 In which case the Raisuli link surfaces again. Regards, Emanuel

28th January 2007, 10:05 PM	#4
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,192	Thanks very much Fenris! I'll be looking forward to those photos, and I'll keep looking for more on the markings, and if I can find other similar. All the best, Jim