Nomadic swords

ariel · 21st August 2018, 12:20 AM

Teodor,
You are correct: these sabers are attributed mainly ( not exclusively) by the site of their final " unearthing". Upper Volga - Bulgars, Western Ukraine- Qipchaq/Cuman, North Caucasus/Don - Khazars, etc. Because of that, attributing and dating them is extremely difficult and imprecise.

From the moment of their first appearance, nomadic sabers went into a static period as cleverly noted by Kirill. Then, often in another location, they suddenly mutated into something different, such as Mamluk swords.

As an example, the L-shaped tunkou with the long arm covering the edge was completely inverted sometime in the 12-14 centuries as seen on the frescoes from Ayyubid Egypt, Aravia/Iran and even Serbia ( St. Nikita in the Gracanica church). We may still see the vague reminescencies of tunkou on Mugal tulwars ( indian ricasso), Persian and Turkish blades where instead of a collar there is a triangular decorative element, etc.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Switch to Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Threaded Mode

21st August 2018, 12:20 AM	#7
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Teodor, You are correct: these sabers are attributed mainly ( not exclusively) by the site of their final " unearthing". Upper Volga - Bulgars, Western Ukraine- Qipchaq/Cuman, North Caucasus/Don - Khazars, etc. Because of that, attributing and dating them is extremely difficult and imprecise. From the moment of their first appearance, nomadic sabers went into a static period as cleverly noted by Kirill. Then, often in another location, they suddenly mutated into something different, such as Mamluk swords. As an example, the L-shaped tunkou with the long arm covering the edge was completely inverted sometime in the 12-14 centuries as seen on the frescoes from Ayyubid Egypt, Aravia/Iran and even Serbia ( St. Nikita in the Gracanica church). We may still see the vague reminescencies of tunkou on Mugal tulwars ( indian ricasso), Persian and Turkish blades where instead of a collar there is a triangular decorative element, etc.