Takouba with silvered hilt and European blade

[Iain]

Hi All,

Finally got this one and had a chance to take some photos (poor ones I'm afraid, its dark and snowing here).

This sword was quite a lot of trouble to acquire and I am eternally gratefully to the very kind chap who helped me out with pickup and shipping. Its had a long journey from South Africa and was tied up in my local customs for nearly a month.

Still the wait of nearly two months was more than worth it.

This is an unusual example of a takouba for a few reasons.

Starting with the hilt:

1. I'm pretty sure the hilt is silvered brass.

2. The decorative patterns I've never seen before

3. It is repousse, which I've encountered before but not with the metal raised to this level and as a central feature of the design.


Moving onto the blade:

1. European blade, very thick and pronounced ricasso

2. There is a lion engraved but not of a pattern I recognize off the top of my head. I can attach a larger photo if anyone is interested. The engraving does enter into the fuller (the photo sort of makes it looks like the fuller obscures it), its just a bit faded there.

3. On the other side there's a circle with a straight line. Sort of like a cross and orb on there's no cross piece. Both marks are carefully executed, although there is certainly some difference in style between the two.

All thoughts and comments welcome. Particularly if anyone has seen the hilt motifs before.

[A.alnakkas]

Lovely piece Iain. The blade is certainly great, how thick and wide is it at the ricasso? certainly desirable. The blade appears to have seen some long use and lost shape due to resharpening or is it done purposefully?

I notice that the scabbard at the drag has an interesting patterned leather wrapped around it. Is it common? appears different then the more modern designs with green and gold colours.

There is always the chance that the hilt is of a low quality silver rather then silvered brass? will leave that to more expert members.

Probably this piece is one of the higher end of takoubas and in its early days it would have looked alot prettier then it is now :-)

[Iain]

Originally Posted by A.alnakkas

Lovely piece Iain. The blade is certainly great, how thick and wide is it at the ricasso? certainly desirable. The blade appears to have seen some long use and lost shape due to resharpening or is it done purposefully?

I notice that the scabbard at the drag has an interesting patterned leather wrapped around it. Is it common? appears different then the more modern designs with green and gold colours.

There is always the chance that the hilt is of a low quality silver rather then silvered brass? will leave that to more expert members.

Probably this piece is one of the higher end of takoubas and in its early days it would have looked alot prettier then it is now :-)

Thanks!

1. Ricasso is almost 4mm thick at the base

2. Blade has this profile from repeated sharpening, although some tip reprofiling may have also taken place. It seems quite common on Hausa area swords.

3. The drag is metal and missing the tip, the scabbard is actually done in red and green leather, its just a bit faded on the green.

4. Definitely brass on there.

Heh I think its quite pretty now! Actually the point on the scabbard fittings is interesting, this pattern I have seen, including on Cameroon swords. Perhaps the hilt designs indicate a different ethnic group than the usual suspects (Hausa, Fulani etc).

[colin henshaw]

A good looking older sword, Iain - congratulations. I do like the "brazil nut" pommel and the silvered brass.

The semi-circular decorative elements on the cross-piece look a bit like shackles or leg-irons ??

Regards.

[Martin Lubojacky]

Hi Iain,
there is no "four-leaf design on metal parts", but still - what about Nupe ? (I enclose picture of an old wooden Nupe plate).
I think your collection of Takoubas is pretty representative now
Refgards,
Martin

[Iain]

Originally Posted by colin henshaw

A good looking older sword, Iain - congratulations. I do like the "brazil nut" pommel and the silvered brass.

The semi-circular decorative elements on the cross-piece look a bit like shackles or leg-irons ??

Regards.

Hi Colin,

Interesting thought on the decorative elements. Hadn't looked at it that way before. I'm more inclined to think its simply a geometric motif, but slaving certainly was a big industry in these parts.

I have a feeling I've seen the vertical 'V' shapes somewhere before. Just can't recall where!

Originally Posted by Martin Lubojacky

Hi Iain,
there is no "four-leaf design on metal parts", but still - what about Nupe ? (I enclose picture of an old wooden Nupe plate).
I think your collection of Takoubas is pretty representative now
Refgards,
Martin

Hi Martin,

Nupe is certainly a possibility, although the decoration still seems strange for that - the little loop shapes and the stacked 'V's really seem like something I've seen before. The brass hilt and brass scabbard arm daggers are from Bida usually and show the usual range of motifs used by the Nupe (link to example). But this doesn't necessarily mean anything as this could just be an unusual variant and perhaps just a bit older than most encountered. Bida was famed for silver as well as brass work.


On a more general note, I thought I'd add here a few notes on takouba weights. I picked up a digital scale today and have been having some fun with it. Rather than boring you all with pictures of swords you've already seen I'll just post links and weights.

1. Standard brass hilt takouba with triple fuller blade
711g

2. Very wide bladed takouba with brass hilt and forte plate
873g

3. Medieval bladed takouba
1189g

4. Silvered takouba (the one in this thread)
1029

Obviously the couple with European blades in here are dramatically heavier (the heavier one is really up there due to massive steel forte plates). When I have the time I'm planning to do a little chart of weights and measurements of the swords I currently have around.

[Iain]

No thoughts on the lion mark? I haven't been able to find a match for it yet.

[Jim McDougall]

Hi Iain,
This one is a beauty! and as you have observed, the blade is European, and seems of considerable age, especially with the features seen. It is most interesting that these inscribed markings, especially the very artistically executed couchant lion, are applied in rather awkward position at the fuller terminals. Obviously these are not characteristic of European markings nor decorative themes I can think of. The curious circle with line does of course recall the cross and orb, but does not have the cross, just a line. In most native parlances I can think if, this would seem to be an ecumenical type symbol, much in the way the cross is intended to represent the four cardinal directions.

The lion is far more problematic, and I also could not place where I had seen something similar. Most importantly, the style and artistic detail which is wonderfully detailed I had though perhaps a copied 'heraldic' type lion, but those seem to have distinctive sharp features usually, and not this kind of image. Also, I thought of the Lion of Judah, so important in Abyssinian symbolism, but this is a crowned lion walking, holding sword, so really not applicable. In notes I found concerning Sudan, a lion symbol represents a brave warrior, but it seems invariably rampant in posture.

I thought perhaps the image might have to do regardless, with markings seen on blades known to have been imported, especially in the Red Sea trade prevalent in the 19th c. What I did find was in Bezdek (p.147) which is a circled couchant lion (though facing other direction and more stylized) for C.Lutters & Co. Solingen, 1840-99. I also found on p.154, a walking lion for Carl Spitzer of Solingen from 1863.
Both of these markings however to me suggest the kind of logos or trademarks used by these makers toward the latter part of the 19th when they had become primarily cutlers for tableware, scissors etc. My thoughts were that perhaps these kinds of items coming into trade routes then might have prompted the use of the lion symbolically on a blade, much as with the Lion of Judah and the rampant lion mentioned. What remains a puzzle is from where the model for this carefully inscribed, yet awkwardly placed, lion on the blade might derive.
As yet no answers, but these are thoughts so far.

I think Colin has a compelling suggestion concerning the idea of shackles for these curiously incongruent semi circles on the hilt, and the way they are configured in pairs does call to mind these from the unfortunate trade well known in West Africa in the 19th c. It is also compelling to see the linear circles resembling chains as well.
The repousse silvered metal of the hilt is atypical of the hilts typically seen in these Saharan and West African regions, and also interesting is the 'old style' pommel as well as the characteristically placed studs in place of commonly placed decoration on the guard quillons. I always find these pyramid shaped heads reminiscent of rather ancient nailheads from Roman times, though obviously the form is simple and well known in modern times with tacks etc.

Interesting sword, and seems like a very old European blade which likely entered the Saharan sphere from much earlier times, and the hilt of course one of probably many incarnations for this blade. It remains interesting when the images were inscribed and where.

All the best,
Jim

[colin henshaw]

I was browsing the internet for more images of shackles/leg irons and found these images...

Regards.

[Jim McDougall]

Wow, thanks Colin......even more compelling with those V shaped positionings.

[Iain]

Hi Colin and Jim,

Thanks so much for your responses. Fascinating stuff!

Regarding the repousse hilt work - I looked at a few pieces I have and have had and this style of work seems pretty common, its just not as dramatically done as on this example.

Regarding the potential for the motif on the hilt to be related to shackles or leg irons, I need to dig around a bit to try and understand if these were used in Hausa/Fulani slave raids. I don't, off the top of my head, recall them being mentioned in period sources when Europeans witnessed these raids (Clapperton was one as I recall). But that doesn't really rule their use out. The ones illustrated I believe are from the west African coast? Certainly would lend a slightly macabre angle to the piece.

One thing I'd mention, which perhaps doesn't show perfectly in the photos is that the pommel is bare iron at the top. I'm not sure if it ever had a brass plate on the top. I've never seen a brass hilt where the tang peened over the brass. So I kind of assumed this one was made as it is. I've added a larger photo to show this off better.

Regarding the blade, the C.Lutters & Co mark seems the closest in the pose of the lion. I'll try to get a better photo of it this evening, perhaps the engraving and details will provide some further clues. I am skeptical this was done natively, although I guess it could always have been added at an entry point into the continent like the north African ports. Any thoughts on the age of the blade?

Thanks again for the interest and comments guys!

[Iain]

Here's a larger copy of the lion stamp image. Maybe the devil is in the details.

[CharlesS]

One of the most interesting takoubas I have seen in some time! Seems to prove the possibilities are endless. Thanks for posting.

[Iain]

Hi Charles,

Thanks very much, this one is one of the best I've seen in the last couple years.

Returning to the lion, Jim kindly pointed me towards a similarly posed lion in Lhote found on a single fuller blade in Hoggar with a variation of the cross and orb as well.

This lion is does not contain the detail of mine, but at least shows that the shape and pose is found on other takouba. The hunt continues for a more exact match!

[Iain]

Well I'm beginning to feel a bit thick... I remember now why parts of the decorative elements on this sword felt familiar.

I used to own a cast hilt takouba with some similar "loop" patterns.

Images below. It's not an exact match, but this is closer in decorative style than to the more typical Hausa/Nupe brass work I think.

The sword shown was discussed before on the forum and all of us sorted of leaned something a bit more west Africa like Yoruba.

If we use this as a base and start looking towards the Yoruba things get interesting. According to Smith's Yoruba Armament:

SWORDS
The primary armament of the Yoruba armies before the general introduc-
tion of firearms consisted of swords, spears, and bows and arrows, re-
sembling in this the armies of the Guinea coast at the end of the seventeenth
century described by Dapper and Bosman. There seems to have been
little or no differentiation between cavalry and infantry weapons, though
swords and bows would have been more effective in dismounted action
than from the horses.
The pattern of two-edged straight or gently tapering sword, characteristic
of the Middle Ages in Europe and in Islamic countries, and well-known in
northern Nigeria, was evidently common among the Yoruba; such
swords, about 3 ft. long, were observed as still in use by members of the
Egba army in I86I.

So, Yoruba were takouba users (something that had simply slipped my mind) and the decorative patterns seen on the silver hilted takouba seem to be a possible fit within Yoruba styles.

The lion mark also plays well into a Yoruba context with the lion being a symbol of royalty among the Yoruba.

I'm also including an engraving of a Yoruba trader circa 1890-93 who seems to be carrying a takouba!

Any thoughts?