A little Sahel/Maghreb panoply...

[Iain]

Originally Posted by AhmedH

Dear Iain,

Thanks a lot for posting this. The swords are very good looking, and I'm a die-hard fan of straight double-edged swords. But could you please talk more about them? From which centuries do their blades date? The date of their hilts? Please tell us more; as I find myself interested in knowing more about those swords.

Thanks a lot in advance.

Ahmed Helal Hussein

Thanks for your interest Ahmed.

Dating takouba is not an exact science. Very little to know pictorial evidence exists before the 19th century and accounts form travelers to these regions may mention swords, but almost never describe their appearance.

Examples with firm collection dates are not available before the early 19th century as well, due to the colonial campaigns within these areas.

That being said, many blades can be dated to some degree if they are European in origin and generally speaking hilts an be dated early to pre 19th century, or after.

In terms of blades I have an example from the mid 14th century, the mid 16th century, mid 17th, several from the 18th etc. So it is quite varied.

With hilts, personally I believe the style has remained somewhat static for quite some time, however it is very difficult to be certain how these swords looked in say 1650.

On top of that, blades were and are frequently remounted, meaning a blade and hilt combination is unlikely to be original by the time it ends up in collector's hands.

All the best,
Iain