Arab Cutlasses of the Pirate Coast

TVV · 9th February 2024, 09:05 PM

Here is a link to the storta in the Met Museum, dated to ca. 1490. It is often shown as a sort of a predecessor to nimchas, and one can certainly see some similarities.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/24904

I am not aware of any nicmhas that predate this storta. The earliest nimcha is potentially an example in the Hofburg Imperial Armory with a straight broadsword blade and gilded mounts in Ottoman style. At least Eric Claude dates it to the 16th century. The nimchas in Malta are almost certainly not from the Great Siege, but from later naval engagements (the knights were just as much into piracy as their Ottoman and North African adversaries).

All in all, Anthony North's theory all the way back from the 70s that the nimcha derives from the storta still seems the most plausible to me today, at least when it comes to the blade and guard, while also accounting for Ottoman influence. The grip is more mysterious and that may actually have South-East Asian influences, if not origin, but that is a different topic.

9th February 2024, 09:05 PM	#11
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,601	Here is a link to the storta in the Met Museum, dated to ca. 1490. It is often shown as a sort of a predecessor to nimchas, and one can certainly see some similarities. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/24904 I am not aware of any nicmhas that predate this storta. The earliest nimcha is potentially an example in the Hofburg Imperial Armory with a straight broadsword blade and gilded mounts in Ottoman style. At least Eric Claude dates it to the 16th century. The nimchas in Malta are almost certainly not from the Great Siege, but from later naval engagements (the knights were just as much into piracy as their Ottoman and North African adversaries). All in all, Anthony North's theory all the way back from the 70s that the nimcha derives from the storta still seems the most plausible to me today, at least when it comes to the blade and guard, while also accounting for Ottoman influence. The grip is more mysterious and that may actually have South-East Asian influences, if not origin, but that is a different topic.