Two West African swords/cutlasses for I.D.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Reference;
A. http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...4&page=1&pp=30


THE CROSS PART 2 The reference above is a delightful Forum Library thread with excellent artwork.

SEE http://aladokun.com/african-history-...-of-the-cross/ which tables a few aspects of The African Cross. In this document a number of crosses are viewed including the Ethiopian Cross and the Ankth although in the latter model the cross is comprised of a dominant handle not seen in West African swords as such. The cross we are looking for is a simple + sign. Nkisi Sarabanda provides us with a circle and crosses which correspond in many ways with the Voodoo Cross or gateway below and is shown for comparison... This is a Congo tribal geometry which I believe is the key to the cross on the broad Machete we are looking at here.

“Nkisi Sarabanda, symbolizing the signature of the spirit, is a representation of a bakongo cosmogram. This symbol portrays how the Congo-angolan people viewed the interaction between the spiritual and material world, or in other words between the living and the dead; the Congo-angolan people believe that these worlds are inherently intertwined. An Nkisi is a spiritual object used for worship purposes, and have been found in places where enslaved Africans have lived…

https://www.thoughtco.com/vodou-veves-4123236 shows some interesting links between Voodoo and the Cross illustrated below and appears to represent a gateway or cross roads. This sign was transmitted to Haiti and New Orleans etc via the slave trade from West Africa... probably from slave centres and more than likely linked to the circle and crosses of the Nkisi Sarabanda..

There is a device on Portuguese Black Crab (shown below) swords manufactured in that region but with a cross incorporated in each Quillon and said to have been sharpened for close quarter work. Did this design flow from or to the Portuguese weapon or is it simply a coincidence?

There seems to be no logical reason why African tribal swords would have a Christian Cross cut in the end of a blade..and the coincidental concept may be relevant but further research is needed. My suggestion backed by the above is that this is a home grown device locked into the Voodoo and like practice of regional tribes from ancient times.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.