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1884.24.110.1

Sabre [.1] with curved European blade and stamped leather sheath [.2] with 4 saucer pommels and a plaited leather carrying strap. [SM 08/11/2007]

1884.24.110.1

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Collection type
Object
Description
Sabre [.1] with curved European blade and stamped leather sheath [.2] with 4 saucer pommels and a plaited leather carrying strap. [SM 08/11/2007]
Long description
Sabre [.1] with curved European blade and stamped leather sheath [.2] with 4 saucer pommels and a plaited leather carrying strap. The blade is single edged. The hilt is bound with leather and decorated with stamped lines. It has a brass pommel. The sheath is curved and is decorated all over with stamped or incised lines, zigzags, circles and dots. Its four saucer pommels are decorated with lines and zigzags too. [SM 08/11/2007]
Date / Period
Date made: Possibly before 1862
Date collected
?By 1862
Acquisition information
Donated: 1884
Materials and processes
Material Animal Leather Skin, Material Brass Metal, Material Pigment, Material Steel Metal, Material Iron Metal, Process Forged (Metal), Process Bound, Process Stamped, Process Incised, Process Plaited, Process Knotted
Dimensions
Length: max 955 mm sword in sheath, Width: max 63 mm sheath - excluding pommels
Object numbers
Accession number: 1884.24.110.1 Accession number: 1884.24.110.2 PR Cat other PR nos: 1072
Research and responses

This is a high status Manding composite sword from the Gambia, reflecting exactly the phenomenon of importation and re-hilting of European blades which I was discussing above. The blade of these prestige weapons is usually that of a French cavalry sabre – reflected by the curved profile it exhibits. Over and above this colonial expression in the blade, the significant characteristic of this Manding dress sword is its high-quality dyed and woven leatherwork scabbard and baldricks, producing a weapon of great beauty. Such Manding dress swords were the exclusive prerogative of men of high social standing (Spring, 1988: 40-1), and intended to enhance their impressive and martial appearance. The flaring leaf-shaped lower portion of the scabbard reflects a shared Sudanic trait with the straight kaskara of the Eastern Sudan, on the far side of the Sahara. Reed (1987: 201) has suggested that the most plausible explanation for this form in the case of the kaskara is that it represents the head of a crocodile. Such swords are notable in the absence of any form of guard for the hand. Research Conducted for DCF Cutting Edge 2006/2007 [AM].

Search terms: Weapon, Status, Sword, Sheath

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