Mechanical Damascus Koumya Blade

RobT · 1st May 2024, 03:11 AM

Hi All,

Over the years I have seen a few koumya with the sheath finial missing (photo 1). I have always passed them up as too much trouble to repair for the asking price and quality. The mechanical damascus blade on this one surprised the heck out of me. I have never before seen a koumya with anything but a mono steel blade. Given the nature of the blade, the price was very reasonable so I decided to buy it and replace the missing finial. Photos two and three show a section of the blade (both sides) after a quick clean and an etch with a 3% nital solution. There is a maker’s mark consisting of two small stamps close to the hilt (photo 4). The stamp closest to the hilt has brass inlayed in two of the four depressions. I imagine that all eight depressions had brass inlays at one time. Adjacent to the maker’s mark on the convex side, a semi-circular notch has been filed into the edge of the blade. Why this was done, I can’t begin to fathom. The blade is only one of a number of anomalies however.
On every koumya I have ever seen, the metal ferrule on the hilt flares out to fit over the sheath throat and the throat can be removed from the rest of the sheath to allow for adjustment of the two wooden blade protectors if necessary. On this koumya, the hilt ferrule (photo 5) is rebated to fit inside the sheath throat (photo 6) and the throat is soldered in place. The wooden lining inside the sheath appears to be one piece (or at least glued together) and doesn’t rattle when the blade is removed and the sheath is shaken.
There is a MOP disk inlayed in the wooden part of the pommel. I have seen inlayed metal disks but never MOP.
On every other koumya in my collection, the tang goes through the metal pommel crest and is held in place by some sort of metal piece (either ornate or simple). On this new one, the tang is blind.
On even the most simply decorated koumya in my collection, the back is more simply decorated than the front. On this new one, both sides are decorated the same (photos 1 & 7 [Photo 7 shows my repair in place]) and, although the decoration is simple, the hilt and sheath are very well constructed.
Although the lugs for the baldric rings are respectable in height and length (photos 1 & 7), caliper measurement shows that they are only 3/16” (4.78mm) thick (photo 6).
Based on the thickness of the lugs, I believe that this is a 20th century piece that was intended for special occasion dress and not everyday carry. Furthermore, based on the presence of the mechanical damascus blade and the other atypical features, I believe this koumya was made outside of Morocco for sale to Moroccans.

Sincerely,
RobT

1st May 2024, 03:11 AM	#1
RobT Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 486	Mechanical Damascus Koumya Blade Hi All, Over the years I have seen a few koumya with the sheath finial missing (photo 1). I have always passed them up as too much trouble to repair for the asking price and quality. The mechanical damascus blade on this one surprised the heck out of me. I have never before seen a koumya with anything but a mono steel blade. Given the nature of the blade, the price was very reasonable so I decided to buy it and replace the missing finial. Photos two and three show a section of the blade (both sides) after a quick clean and an etch with a 3% nital solution. There is a maker’s mark consisting of two small stamps close to the hilt (photo 4). The stamp closest to the hilt has brass inlayed in two of the four depressions. I imagine that all eight depressions had brass inlays at one time. Adjacent to the maker’s mark on the convex side, a semi-circular notch has been filed into the edge of the blade. Why this was done, I can’t begin to fathom. The blade is only one of a number of anomalies however. On every koumya I have ever seen, the metal ferrule on the hilt flares out to fit over the sheath throat and the throat can be removed from the rest of the sheath to allow for adjustment of the two wooden blade protectors if necessary. On this koumya, the hilt ferrule (photo 5) is rebated to fit inside the sheath throat (photo 6) and the throat is soldered in place. The wooden lining inside the sheath appears to be one piece (or at least glued together) and doesn’t rattle when the blade is removed and the sheath is shaken. There is a MOP disk inlayed in the wooden part of the pommel. I have seen inlayed metal disks but never MOP. On every other koumya in my collection, the tang goes through the metal pommel crest and is held in place by some sort of metal piece (either ornate or simple). On this new one, the tang is blind. On even the most simply decorated koumya in my collection, the back is more simply decorated than the front. On this new one, both sides are decorated the same (photos 1 & 7 [Photo 7 shows my repair in place]) and, although the decoration is simple, the hilt and sheath are very well constructed. Although the lugs for the baldric rings are respectable in height and length (photos 1 & 7), caliper measurement shows that they are only 3/16” (4.78mm) thick (photo 6). Based on the thickness of the lugs, I believe that this is a 20th century piece that was intended for special occasion dress and not everyday carry. Furthermore, based on the presence of the mechanical damascus blade and the other atypical features, I believe this koumya was made outside of Morocco for sale to Moroccans. Sincerely, RobT Attached Images