The Manding sword, the Tuareg aljuinar and Omani curved kattara: Are they connected?

Ibrahiim al Balooshi · 6th April 2019, 12:38 AM

To see the dimensions of the flambouyant sayf against the dancer and to view the dancer against the so called Omani curved Kattarah. Also illustrated for interest is a shot with the Dancer, The curved Kattarah, and the Sayf Yamaani...and above is the Mandinka curved sword ... see below...

The curved so called Omani Kattarah has a single cutting edge and point on an open Long Omani Hilt and the blade is quite stiff with a thick back edge ...and given the Omani Scabbard and Terrs … It follows the Manding as being warlike looking but actually not for fighting and like the dancer it has no guard. Enters the Omani scene around 1856 via Zanzibar.

The Dancer however, is the fore runner with the classic open Long Hilt and a flat spatulate tipped very flexible blade and round tip with razor sharp edges and uses the Terrs... used to greet the Sultan and as a pageantry sword dating from about 1820 1830 and designed for the ruler Saiid Sultan also known as Said the Great... of Zanzibar fame..

It goes to show that sword form, as many people know it, does not automatically follow in every country and just because it looks like a battle sword doesn't mean that it is.

Ibrahiim al Balooshi · 6th April 2019, 02:51 AM

REFERENCE;
A. http://web.prm.ox.ac.uk/weapons/inde...-26/index.html

QUOTE'' GambiaGambiaDress sword from The Gambia, Africa. Collected by W. D. Canol and owned by George Scott. Given to the Museum by Mr. Scott's niece, Majorie T. Cam in 1929. SEE BELOW

This sword is a 'dress sword'. It was worn as a status symbol by a wealthy or high-status member of the Mandinka, a large ethnic community of West Africa. One way of concluding that it was never used in combat is due to the complete lack of guard for the hand.

The Art of War
This high-status sword from The Gambia demonstrates the widespread African practice of importing European sword blades and supplying them with a hilt and scabbard of local style. The blades of such Mandinka dress swords are usually are usually those of curved French cavalry sabres, reflecting the economic networks of European colonial influence. These swords were the exclusive prerogative of Mandinka men of importance or social standing and were intended to enhance their impressive and martial appearance.

The most significant artistic feature of the sword is the very high quality of dyed and woven leatherwork to be seen on the scabbard and baldrics (wearing straps). The result is particularly striking, and represents a strong culture of dyed, tooled and plaited leatherwork in much of West Africa. The geometric pattern of woven fibre is especially representative of decorative material culture in this region.

The flaring leaf-shaped lower portion of the scabbard is said to represent the head of a crocodile and can also seen on the scabbard of the straight kaskara sword of the Eastern Sudan, on the opposite side of the continent's Sudanic belt. Some scholars think the most plausible explanation for the unusual scabbard form appearing in two places over 3000 miles apart is that it was carried westward across the Sudan by successive waves of Islamic warriors over the last one thousand years''.UNQUOTE.

6th April 2019, 12:38 AM	#1
Ibrahiim al Balooshi Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Buraimi Oman, on the border with the UAE Posts: 4,408	To see the dimensions of the flambouyant sayf against the dancer and to view the dancer against the so called Omani curved Kattarah. Also illustrated for interest is a shot with the Dancer, The curved Kattarah, and the Sayf Yamaani...and above is the Mandinka curved sword ... see below... The curved so called Omani Kattarah has a single cutting edge and point on an open Long Omani Hilt and the blade is quite stiff with a thick back edge ...and given the Omani Scabbard and Terrs … It follows the Manding as being warlike looking but actually not for fighting and like the dancer it has no guard. Enters the Omani scene around 1856 via Zanzibar. The Dancer however, is the fore runner with the classic open Long Hilt and a flat spatulate tipped very flexible blade and round tip with razor sharp edges and uses the Terrs... used to greet the Sultan and as a pageantry sword dating from about 1820 1830 and designed for the ruler Saiid Sultan also known as Said the Great... of Zanzibar fame.. It goes to show that sword form, as many people know it, does not automatically follow in every country and just because it looks like a battle sword doesn't mean that it is. Attached Images Last edited by Ibrahiim al Balooshi; 6th April 2019 at 01:19 AM.

6th April 2019, 02:51 AM	#2
Ibrahiim al Balooshi Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Buraimi Oman, on the border with the UAE Posts: 4,408	REFERENCE; A. http://web.prm.ox.ac.uk/weapons/inde...-26/index.html QUOTE'' GambiaGambiaDress sword from The Gambia, Africa. Collected by W. D. Canol and owned by George Scott. Given to the Museum by Mr. Scott's niece, Majorie T. Cam in 1929. SEE BELOW This sword is a 'dress sword'. It was worn as a status symbol by a wealthy or high-status member of the Mandinka, a large ethnic community of West Africa. One way of concluding that it was never used in combat is due to the complete lack of guard for the hand. The Art of War This high-status sword from The Gambia demonstrates the widespread African practice of importing European sword blades and supplying them with a hilt and scabbard of local style. The blades of such Mandinka dress swords are usually are usually those of curved French cavalry sabres, reflecting the economic networks of European colonial influence. These swords were the exclusive prerogative of Mandinka men of importance or social standing and were intended to enhance their impressive and martial appearance. The most significant artistic feature of the sword is the very high quality of dyed and woven leatherwork to be seen on the scabbard and baldrics (wearing straps). The result is particularly striking, and represents a strong culture of dyed, tooled and plaited leatherwork in much of West Africa. The geometric pattern of woven fibre is especially representative of decorative material culture in this region. The flaring leaf-shaped lower portion of the scabbard is said to represent the head of a crocodile and can also seen on the scabbard of the straight kaskara sword of the Eastern Sudan, on the opposite side of the continent's Sudanic belt. Some scholars think the most plausible explanation for the unusual scabbard form appearing in two places over 3000 miles apart is that it was carried westward across the Sudan by successive waves of Islamic warriors over the last one thousand years''.UNQUOTE. Attached Images