A few takouba (West African sword type) from my collection

[peter monahan]

I spent two years in Bauchi State, just north of Jos, on the edge of the central plateau.  I was teaching at a teachers' training college under the auspices of an organization called CUSO, a sort of canadian version of the Peace Corps.  Bauchi State was just on the edge of the savannah country in n orthern Nigeria and perhaps one third of my students were Hausa, the rest being a mix, especially because my school was Chrisitian, not Muslim.

I was able to see traditional warriors and chiefs from Bauchi, Kano and Sokoto in my travels but only as a tourist and never got a close look at the weaponry.  I had a very nice Turage sword which got lost in transit when I travelled out of Niger and a much less well made example which I managed to get home, but modern tourist work, as I was on a very limited budget and certainly not bididng on older pieces.

Your 'extended' blade is fascinating.  I can imagine that it would seem very solid but not sure I'd trust my life to it on the battlefield.  OTOH, it would certainly be a prestigious thing to carry and perhaps as strong as a one piece blade - only a sword smith could say for sure.  Thank you for sharing it! 

[Trooper_D]

19 hours ago, ispn said:

Yes, the sword uses a new forte to mount the European blade. The forte is secured to the hilt by a tang and thus the hilt is quite secure.

Thanks for the fascinating insight and for the additional example, ispn - this approach to reusing an old blade is completely new to me.

[ispn]

17 hours ago, peter monahan said:

I spent two years in Bauchi State, just north of Jos, on the edge of the central plateau.  I was teaching at a teachers' training college under the auspices of an organization called CUSO, a sort of canadian version of the Peace Corps.  Bauchi State was just on the edge of the savannah country in n orthern Nigeria and perhaps one third of my students were Hausa, the rest being a mix, especially because my school was Chrisitian, not Muslim.

I was able to see traditional warriors and chiefs from Bauchi, Kano and Sokoto in my travels but only as a tourist and never got a close look at the weaponry.  I had a very nice Turage sword which got lost in transit when I travelled out of Niger and a much less well made example which I managed to get home, but modern tourist work, as I was on a very limited budget and certainly not bididng on older pieces.

Your 'extended' blade is fascinating.  I can imagine that it would seem very solid but not sure I'd trust my life to it on the battlefield.  OTOH, it would certainly be a prestigious thing to carry and perhaps as strong as a one piece blade - only a sword smith could say for sure.  Thank you for sharing it! 

Fascinating Peter! Bauchi is an interesting area and if I'm not mistaken with a bit of a Kanuri population in the north as well. A pity about the sword that went missing. Most of the truly good swords seem to have ended up in the UK due to colonial bring backs. While France also holds quite a few from their colonies.

About the blade mount, I completely understand a bit of skepticism about how sturdy this would be in practice and I have to admit I haven't exactly been stress testing a 660 year old blade! However I've had probably ten or so of these pass through my hands over the years and all have given the impression of being quite sturdy and the wear and sharpening on the blades indicates they were used. Certainly these mounts give the impression of being just as sturdy as the full length blades.

In the case of this particular sword, it holds particular interest for me as the hilt and mounts themselves are probably the oldest I own and I suspect this sword left Africa quite a while ago. Certainly it predates, based on what I can ascertain from examples with collection dates, the 19th century and based on what I have to admit is some conjecture, I suspect the mounts date to before the 18th century. All good fun to imagine of course, proving it is another thing!

 

10 minutes ago, Trooper_D said:

Thanks for the fascinating insight and for the additional example, ispn - this approach to reusing an old blade is completely new to me.

Thanks Trooper, just call me Iain by the way. It is indeed an interesting approach reflecting I think the high value placed on quality steel in these regions. Blades were and are revered and passed down for generations. I can't think of another instance where blades are mounted this way on a regular basis. Obviously it worked well enough to be considered worth doing! For some collectors it's a bit of a blemish I think to have a broken blade, but for myself, it's actually become an intriguing way to ID older blades. 

[peter monahan]

duplicate post.

Edited January 8, 2016 by peter monahan

[ispn]

Hi Peter, looks like you might have posted the same post twice by mistake?  

[peter monahan]

20 hours ago, ispn said:

Hi Peter, looks like you might have posted the same post twice by mistake?  

Thanks!  The computer kicked me oput of the forum and seems to have done that in the process.  Fixed now.