Ethiopian alternative straight swords

[Jim McDougall]

Hi Iain,
These strange pommel configurations, according to personal communications some years ago with archaeologist/curator Timothy Kendall, and an example in his collection with twin, flattened spheres similar to this arrangement, these were used by the mounted nobility in Darfur.
Apparantly these spheres often contained beans or pebbles and were used presumably to rattle over thier heads in victory celebrations or in many cases to terrify captives.
Ref: "History and Antiquities of Darfur" H.C.Balfour Paul, Sudan Antiquities Pamphlet, 1955.
Mr. Kendall is an archaeologist active in Egyptian and Sudanese sites, and his collection was on tour in Austria at the time I spoke with him, around ten years ago.
It would seem this example vestigially recalls these twin pommels.

Not sure on the sword in the second photo, but it seems a number of otherwise relatively inconsequential sword types ended up as regalia swords in Abyssinia during diplomatic contacts late 19th century. I have an article around here somewhere on one of these kinds of swords presented to King Theodore around that time.

All the best,
Jim