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13th October 2009, 07:01 PM
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#1 |
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 227
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...sorry Dom, by "characters" I meant "letters". Between the suspension rings there are two embossed Arabic letters. They look like the number "2".
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14th October 2009, 01:59 PM
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#2 |
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EAAF Staff
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Upstate New York, USA
Posts: 940
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Residual markings from steel stock?
Prof. Briggs (plate XXI b) illustrates (from the literature) a blade with markings that I suspect originated as stampings on European sheet steel later cut and shaped to be a blade. Does your blade appear to be fully forged, or is it, like some kaskara I have, likely due to stock removal.
I believe I have a takouba with similar markings and I shall begin to work through the pile and see if I can find and photograph it. |
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14th October 2009, 11:25 PM
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#3 | |
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Paris (FR*) Cairo (EG)
Posts: 1,142
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Quote:
if ... IF they are "letters" they aren't from arabic alphabet  à + Dom |
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15th October 2009, 12:52 AM
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#4 |
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 227
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...oh dear! What could they be? I assumed they were letters as I'd seen similar scabbard decorations posted here...
...I don't have it yet Lee but I expect it to be sheet steel - the particular binding used at the lower end of the grip to secure the crossguard usually goes with thin blades (often quite corroded) and "cut" fullers. When they do have moons they are abstract. Interesting illustration - I don't have Briggs - does anyone have a scan? |
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15th October 2009, 01:03 AM
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#5 | |
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Paris (FR*) Cairo (EG)
Posts: 1,142
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Quote:
 on the other ... nothing .. unreadable à + Dom |
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15th October 2009, 01:55 AM
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#6 |
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 227
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... but I've seen the marks that look like 2 on scabbards before - has anyone else seen them? Isn't it H'aa? Like 2 upside down?
Last edited by stephen wood; 15th October 2009 at 11:57 PM. |
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15th October 2009, 09:37 PM
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#7 |
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 227
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The sword has arrived - it appears to be sheet steel - very light and flexible but seems quite old. I had assumed: forged=old, sheet=new...
...not in this case - it seems older than some forged blades I have handled. Maybe the quality of these blades has made them more suceptible to pitting and corrosion. Does anyone know when the earliest sheet steel weapons in the region date from? Last edited by stephen wood; 16th October 2009 at 12:08 AM. |
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17th October 2009, 01:29 PM
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#8 |
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 227
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...is it possible that MD is Maryland - sheet steel in production there at least a century ago?
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