unusual african dagger covered in cowrie shells

[Peter B.]

Originally Posted by Ian

Peter, posting a picture of your knife would be helpful. Ian

Hello Ian, here is a picture of my knife. It looks almost the same.
I have already seen several of these knives, always with a blade made of flat steel and without a cutting edge.
To me it looks like tourist copies from the same workshop or at least from a very limited area.
But I have no idea where exactly. The cowrie shells at least indicate that it is close to the sea, but I don't know how far they are traded inland.

[Peter B.]

On closer inspection you can see that the handle of Ibrahiim's copy is carved in more detail than mine. Perhaps an original historical blade is hidden in the scabbard.

I hope that Ibrahiim will read along, maybe he can hand in a photo of his blade.
(And correct the broken link from ijhssnet.com)

[colin henshaw]

Originally Posted by Peter B.

On closer inspection you can see that the handle of Ibrahiim's copy is carved in more detail than mine. Perhaps an original historical blade is hidden in the scabbard.

I hope that Ibrahiim will read along, maybe he can hand in a photo of his blade.
(And correct the broken link from ijhssnet.com)

This knife posted by Peter B. and the similar one posted by Ibrahim Al Balooshi are both crude modern items produced in bulk for the tourist trade. I would guess they are made in West Africa somewhere.

[Peter B.]

Here is another example of these mass-produced knives.
Image courtesy of the Auktionshaus am See in Konstanz.