Recent takoubas for sharing

[Sajen]

Nice one, thank you for sharing!

Regards,

Detlef

[Iain]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Nice one, thank you for sharing!

Regards,

Detlef

Thanks! I feel lucky to have a few of these 'heavier' takouba now with very big beefy blades. I'm a bit surprised this one isn't marked at all (perhaps something hidden under the guard, but there's no way to disassemble it).

The different levels of sharpening on takouba intrigue me, this one is quite worn while the one at the beginning of this thread has an older blade and has much less wear...

[Iain]

At the risk of boring you all to death with yet another of these...

[TVV]

Very nice gurda markings. Iain, is this takouba double or single edged? If double, was the blade originally like that?

Teodor

[Iain]

Originally Posted by TVV

Very nice gurda markings. Iain, is this takouba double or single edged? If double, was the blade originally like that?

Teodor

Hi Teodor,

Thre sickles and astral configurations are present on one side of the blade only. This was originally a single edged backsword blade, modified to be double edged in these mounts. There's a well worn ricasso as well.

This one has seen a lot of use and repeat sharpening in it's life and the mounts are decently old.

Iain

[TVV]

Very nice sword indeed. Based on the hilt, would you classify it as Hausa?

Teodor

[Iain]

Originally Posted by TVV

Very nice sword indeed. Based on the hilt, would you classify it as Hausa?

Teodor

Thanks! I'd actually put it down as Tuareg, but it's tough to say really. Without a scabbard it gets even tougher.

Decoratively there's nothing here to really distinguish this. This is an old drawing of a Tuareg example: http://encyclopedieberbere.revues.or...2159/img-1.png with a Spanish blade.

Even after much trying I've yet to find a definitive way to make ethnic classifications. Hausa tends to use longer scabbard throats and chaps, Nupe pieces are often all metal hilts. The wide blades are pretty distinctive etc...

But your basic mounts like these... Not really all that distinct.

It used to annoy me, but more and more I see it as a pattern that was simply very common across a large area and a type manufactured in the greatest numbers in a few commercial centers and widely exported. Hence it's not surprising to see them distributed far and wide among various ethnic groups, rather than being tribally distinct.