In need of an African scabbard ID

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by ispn

Yes, it is takouba Lew, which is why I didn't have it pinned as Manding.

Very un-Tuareg takouba overall. Pointed tip, blade geometry is completely different edge geometry doesn't feature the heavily "ground back" look often found on Tuareg pieces, although it has obviously been sharpened many times. Very stiff blade but has some spring. Looks like it's seen some action and has an unfortunate crack in the blade which looks like it came from edge-on-edge contact. But that comes with the territory of an older piece I guess. It's still structurally sound.

Leather on the hilt is one piece and bound with cord (Tuareg pieces are usually glued or stitched in two separate pieces for guard and handle). Swelled grip I'm 90% sure is wood underneath.

Overall it has a great balance in the hand and feels more like a gladius then the longer, more delicate feel of Tuareg pieces.

Here's a shot with a few more takouba for comparison.

Very nice range in this grouping, which gives excellent perspective on the diversity of these Saharan swords. As Gav has well noted, there was little wasted in these regions, and often wide variations resulting as components and blades were constantly recycled.
There was constant movement in trade and tribal interaction as well, and the Manding styling with the geometric designs and leatherwork is recognizable, but widely used even outside thier tribal perameters.
Very impressive collection!

[Iain]

Thanks Jim, I've become almost entirely focused on takouba. This grouping is missing three I have stored in California, but those should be joining me in Europe in August. Actually I have a bit of a project that I'm preparing about takouba in general which I will introduce in a few days hopefully.

Tuareg, Fulani, Manding, Hausa to name only a few, I find the geographical area the type is spread over, incredible.