A Saturday afternoon African riddle

Iain · 11th June 2011, 02:53 PM

For those that like African things... I'll give a hint - it's not East or N. African.

Obviously a long way to go on rust removal and restoration, this thing has a very crusty and deep reddish patina and corrosion on the iron blade. The hilt is solid bronze and heavily blackened from use and probably smoke. I ran out of oil and a few other cleaning materials this afternoon so I thought why not take a break, throw it up here and see if anyone can guess what it is.

mrwizard · 11th June 2011, 03:16 PM

Ohh, a riddle! :-)

My guess is that this Takouba is of Hausa origin based on the shape of the hilt.

Edit: On the other hand the motif on the hilt doesn't look like Hausa, so my second guess is that i'm wrong...

Best Regards,
Thilo

Iain · 11th June 2011, 10:49 PM

Hi Thilo,

You would be wrong, but not at all a bad guess. You are generally in the right geographical area and oddly this is from a group that also uses takouba. So remarkably close in fact! At least among this people, this form should I think, precede the takouba.

Iain

tom hyle · 12th June 2011, 12:31 AM

tuareq?
The takouba form is used by multiple tribes.....is this solid brass or wood-filled?
The blade seems odd, too; very thick and rather narrow for a takouba.

A.alnakkas · 12th June 2011, 08:31 AM

Not going to say any opinion as I am no expert but I cant wait to see this one cleaned and ready

Blade looks much much older then the hilt though?

Iain · 12th June 2011, 09:09 AM

Tom,

Not Tuareg. This diamond cross section does not turn up in takouba really. Extremely thick tang.

Solid, cast hilt. Two piece design, guard and then single piece grip and pommel.

A.alnakkas,

Hilt should be contemporary with the blade. The cleaning on this is going to take a while. Decades of probably sitting in the roof of a hut hasn't been kind.

Keep guessing folks but forget the normal tribal associations of takouba.

I'll probably say what it actually is later today if there's not much more interest in guessing.

Cheers,

Iain

11th June 2011, 02:53 PM	#1
Iain Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Olomouc Posts: 1,708	A Saturday afternoon African riddle For those that like African things... I'll give a hint - it's not East or N. African. Obviously a long way to go on rust removal and restoration, this thing has a very crusty and deep reddish patina and corrosion on the iron blade. The hilt is solid bronze and heavily blackened from use and probably smoke. I ran out of oil and a few other cleaning materials this afternoon so I thought why not take a break, throw it up here and see if anyone can guess what it is. Attached Images

11th June 2011, 03:16 PM	#2
mrwizard Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Dortmund, Germany Posts: 102	Ohh, a riddle! :-) My guess is that this Takouba is of Hausa origin based on the shape of the hilt. Edit: On the other hand the motif on the hilt doesn't look like Hausa, so my second guess is that i'm wrong... Best Regards, Thilo Last edited by mrwizard; 11th June 2011 at 04:12 PM.

11th June 2011, 10:49 PM	#3
Iain Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Olomouc Posts: 1,708	Hi Thilo, You would be wrong, but not at all a bad guess. You are generally in the right geographical area and oddly this is from a group that also uses takouba. So remarkably close in fact! At least among this people, this form should I think, precede the takouba. Iain Last edited by Iain; 12th June 2011 at 12:13 AM.

12th June 2011, 12:31 AM	#4
tom hyle Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Houston, TX, USA Posts: 1,254	tuareq? The takouba form is used by multiple tribes.....is this solid brass or wood-filled? The blade seems odd, too; very thick and rather narrow for a takouba.

12th June 2011, 08:31 AM	#5
A.alnakkas Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuwait Posts: 1,340	Not going to say any opinion as I am no expert but I cant wait to see this one cleaned and ready Blade looks much much older then the hilt though?

12th June 2011, 09:09 AM	#6
Iain Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Olomouc Posts: 1,708	Tom, Not Tuareg. This diamond cross section does not turn up in takouba really. Extremely thick tang. Solid, cast hilt. Two piece design, guard and then single piece grip and pommel. A.alnakkas, Hilt should be contemporary with the blade. The cleaning on this is going to take a while. Decades of probably sitting in the roof of a hut hasn't been kind. Keep guessing folks but forget the normal tribal associations of takouba. I'll probably say what it actually is later today if there's not much more interest in guessing. Cheers, Iain