The mysterious Mandinka saber

[Changdao]

Originally Posted by Pertinax

Thanks to Changdao for this very important information.

But I would like to discuss specifically the "Mandinka" sabers, which date to the late 19th - early 20th centuries.

I have the following questions:

1. The production of the specimens shown in the photo involved various crafts—blacksmiths, tanners, coppersmiths (this is not the work of a lone artisan), similar to the Blacksmith Market (A. Suq al Haddad) in Kassala described in Edwin Hanley's brilliant essay. Where could such production have taken place at that time?

2. I rightly mentioned the Berlin Conference of 1884 and the colonization of Africa by the early 20th century. Did the colonizers in the occupied territories allow local residents to make swords and sabers?

All this calls into question the dating of these specimens.

Finally, the presence of such richly decorated scabbards calls into question the use of these sabers in combat.

Sincerely,
Yuri

Those certainly are interesting questions.

Regarding 1, in traditional Mandinka society there is a tripartite hereditary division between horon or free farmers (from which the "noblemen" and headmen come from), nyamakala or specialized professionals, and slaves (who could become freemen, or their descendants could). Amongst the specialized professionals we find leather workers (garankew, and they claim Soninke origins), wood carvers, bards, and metalworkers or numuw (that also do pottery in the female side of the clans). They are integrated into wider Mande society, but one would find greater agglomerations of them, capable of more complex and specialized work, in large villages and urban areas. Some areas in particular have greater concentrations of metalworkers than others, but every single town had (and still had in the 20th century) at least a blacksmith family. Their workspaces are invariably in these towns, and most have three to five families of metalworkers living there. Smelting furnaces were, however, located outside of town and operated jointly by the local smith communities.

Here I am working from The Mande blacksmiths : knowledge, power, and art in West Africa

Regarding the scabbards, I don't see why being ornate would make them unfit for combat. Lavish decoration on weaponry has been a feature of warfare everywhere since prehistory, and when individuals could afford some bling on their gear they almost invariably did so. Besides, in 19th century engravings where they appear one can sometimes spot these leather decorations.

[Pertinax]

Originally Posted by Changdao

Those certainly are interesting questions.

Regarding 1, in traditional Mandinka society there is a tripartite hereditary division between horon or free farmers (from which the "noblemen" and headmen come from), nyamakala or specialized professionals, and slaves (who could become freemen, or their descendants could). Amongst the specialized professionals we find leather workers (garankew, and they claim Soninke origins), wood carvers, bards, and metalworkers or numuw (that also do pottery in the female side of the clans). They are integrated into wider Mande society, but one would find greater agglomerations of them, capable of more complex and specialized work, in large villages and urban areas. Some areas in particular have greater concentrations of metalworkers than others, but every single town had (and still had in the 20th century) at least a blacksmith family. Their workspaces are invariably in these towns, and most have three to five families of metalworkers living there. Smelting furnaces were, however, located outside of town and operated jointly by the local smith communities.

Here I am working from The Mande blacksmiths : knowledge, power, and art in West Africa

Regarding the scabbards, I don't see why being ornate would make them unfit for combat. Lavish decoration on weaponry has been a feature of warfare everywhere since prehistory, and when individuals could afford some bling on their gear they almost invariably did so. Besides, in 19th century engravings where they appear one can sometimes spot these leather decorations.

A new book about African history, that's fantastic! I wish you creative success!

Regarding trinkets on weapons:

Firstly, they are a hindrance in real combat. A combat weapon should be functional and simple. Trust me, I have experience, unfortunately, and I have.

Secondly, they are expensive. When examining the copper pommels of the hilts, I initially thought they were lathe-made, but after enlarging the images, I realized they were cast. Moreover, each saber is individually cast. Making fancy scabbards and "trinkets" also takes time and material costs. This is all acceptable when fulfilling a custom order from a wealthy client or if the item is being made for sale, but not for military use. For example, in January 1861, Massina's army was mobilized under the command of Ba Lobbo, consisting of 8,000 cavalry, 5,000 infantry, and 1,000 musketeers. In engravings of warriors from old books, sabers are prominent, displayed as a symbol of power and wealth. An immediate analogy comes to mind: paintings of military leaders with all their decorations, always with an ornate saber or rapier, or photos of officers from photo salons—dress uniforms and always with a fine saber.

After the fashion for "Indian rooms" emerged in Europe and Russia in the 19th century, talwars and other exotic "weapons" began to be forged en masse in Indian bazaars. A similar situation arose in the 20th century with African weaponry: exotic items began to be mass-produced for sale in all regions of Africa; demand creates supply.

In my opinion, one must be very cautious when dating African weaponry. Items with "iron" provenance, such as the one Jim presented (the specimen that belonged to Governor Gallieni), are extremely rare. The history of Africa remains poorly understood, leaving many gaps. This is due to the lack of a written language, the large number of different peoples and tribes, their migrations, the rise and fall of empires, and the inconsistency of accounts from the few travelers who managed to penetrate the region. And, of course, the vast, expansive territories.

Unscrupulous dealers exploit all of this to inflate prices, misrepresenting the age and origin of objects. Each object must be considered in relation to a specific region and the historical events that took place there. This is an important factor in understanding the context of a work when determining its authenticity, value, and uniqueness.

I repeat, the book you are working on will be invaluable for gaining new knowledge.

Sorry for such a long passage, I just wanted to share something that has been bothering me.

Sincerely,
Yuri

P.S. Please share which book the engraving is from - Guerrier toucouleur.

[Changdao]

Originally Posted by Pertinax

A new book about African history, that's fantastic! I wish you creative success!

Regarding trinkets on weapons:

Firstly, they are a hindrance in real combat. A combat weapon should be functional and simple. Trust me, I have experience, unfortunately, and I have.

Secondly, they are expensive. When examining the copper pommels of the hilts, I initially thought they were lathe-made, but after enlarging the images, I realized they were cast. Moreover, each saber is individually cast. Making fancy scabbards and "trinkets" also takes time and material costs. This is all acceptable when fulfilling a custom order from a wealthy client or if the item is being made for sale, but not for military use. For example, in January 1861, Massina's army was mobilized under the command of Ba Lobbo, consisting of 8,000 cavalry, 5,000 infantry, and 1,000 musketeers. In engravings of warriors from old books, sabers are prominent, displayed as a symbol of power and wealth. An immediate analogy comes to mind: paintings of military leaders with all their decorations, always with an ornate saber or rapier, or photos of officers from photo salons—dress uniforms and always with a fine saber.

But they are functional and simple weapons. The unsheathed swords are pretty spartan, except for the quality of the leatherwork, that varies a lot. And there is also variation in how much decoration they have on the scabbards. Some just have a bunch of leather strands, and others have much more. That's not going to be a hindrance in combat. Besides, cavalrymen and officers (on horse) usually can afford to carry more ornate decorations in their panoply, but infantry also do. Plumed crests for helmets in Greece and Rome, horns in Bronze Age helmets, the lavishly ornate Celtiberian weapons, the luxurious Sassanid swords and the textile bells they hang in their horses' barding, Medieval European decorated helmets, bejewelded swords and armor, the beautiful Renaissance plate armor sets, samurai scabbards with fur decorations at the end and their decorated helmets...

Those paintings and photos of officers showing off their status through weapons show a reality that also manifested on the battlefield; they went to war armed in the most spectacular fashion they could afford. Sure, coral hilted swords for example were exclusively civilian, but there's a difference between that and a gilded hilt. The European contemporaries of these antique examples also carried swords in Africa: the troopers were given plain sabers, but the officers often purchased and carried more ornate things such as non-regulation pattern blades, engraving and etching on the blades, custom hilts, etc. And then top officers carried even more luxurious objects that were part of their attire (ceremonial in a way), but perfectly capable of being used in earnest in a dire spot.

As for the second point, how does a copper or brass pommel make them expensive? West African warriors had a very old tradition of carrying copper bracelets and torques. These were no more in the 19th century (but they still used gris-gris), but those supposed a much greater amount of metal. On the whole, these would be rather cheap swords (keeping in mind that not everyone had one, so some wealth would be necessary). And these were not mass-produced by a state-owned arsenal to equip warriors on the cheap, they were bought by the soldiers themselves out of their pocket.

And these sabers were not necessarily the go to for the highest status swords in Mandinka society. You also have the straight shortswords and daggers that have much more complex and expensive materials and style for the hilt. These are rare in 19th century art, but the only example I know of is carried by a Mandinka chief of the Gambia.

Originally Posted by Pertinax

After the fashion for "Indian rooms" emerged in Europe and Russia in the 19th century, talwars and other exotic "weapons" began to be forged en masse in Indian bazaars. A similar situation arose in the 20th century with African weaponry: exotic items began to be mass-produced for sale in all regions of Africa; demand creates supply.

In my opinion, one must be very cautious when dating African weaponry. Items with "iron" provenance, such as the one Jim presented (the specimen that belonged to Governor Gallieni), are extremely rare. The history of Africa remains poorly understood, leaving many gaps. This is due to the lack of a written language, the large number of different peoples and tribes, their migrations, the rise and fall of empires, and the inconsistency of accounts from the few travelers who managed to penetrate the region. And, of course, the vast, expansive territories.

Unscrupulous dealers exploit all of this to inflate prices, misrepresenting the age and origin of objects. Each object must be considered in relation to a specific region and the historical events that took place there. This is an important factor in understanding the context of a work when determining its authenticity, value, and uniqueness.

I repeat, the book you are working on will be invaluable for gaining new knowledge.

Sorry for such a long passage, I just wanted to share something that has been bothering me.

Sincerely,
Yuri

P.S. Please share which book the engraving is from - Guerrier toucouleur.

Agreed entirely.

P.S. I do not know exactly from where the engraving comes from.