Takouba with european blade

Jim McDougall · 6th March 2009, 08:09 PM

Wow!! Emmanuel, you have a treasure there in that blade. That appears to be a genuine Solingen blade from the 17th century, possibly even a Passau blade from the earlier part. The running wolf mark is distinctively associated with Passau, but became more widely used later.

It would be hard to imagine just how early this blade entered the Tuareg sphere in the Sahara, but they were traditionally sacrosanct and handed down in family and tribal units faithfully for a very long time. Since you are in France, I must imagine that this takouba may have been an item acquired in colonial situations in North Africa, and these were often obtained by troops in occupation.
This makes this piece most desirable, as most blades seen on takoubas in collections these days are native made examples.

The scabbard and mounts on these weapons are typically relatively new as these blades are constantly refurbished as desert climate and wear take thier toll, and they are often remounted as they change hands.

All best regards,
Jim

6th March 2009, 08:09 PM	#2
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,458	Wow!! Emmanuel, you have a treasure there in that blade. That appears to be a genuine Solingen blade from the 17th century, possibly even a Passau blade from the earlier part. The running wolf mark is distinctively associated with Passau, but became more widely used later. It would be hard to imagine just how early this blade entered the Tuareg sphere in the Sahara, but they were traditionally sacrosanct and handed down in family and tribal units faithfully for a very long time. Since you are in France, I must imagine that this takouba may have been an item acquired in colonial situations in North Africa, and these were often obtained by troops in occupation. This makes this piece most desirable, as most blades seen on takoubas in collections these days are native made examples. The scabbard and mounts on these weapons are typically relatively new as these blades are constantly refurbished as desert climate and wear take thier toll, and they are often remounted as they change hands. All best regards, Jim