Nice old sword. The thuluth etching is common on a "type" related to the Mahdiya movement that was mainly destroyed after the 1898 Battle of Omdurman and the subsequent tracking down & death of the Khalifa. Also, the copper alloy cast crossguard is almost exclusively associated with the thuluth blade. The blade may have been made from sheet steel. The inscriptions usually are religious platitudes; some were even not words , but nonsense. The snake (?) skin covered scabbard likely had a talismanic role. The sword has symbolic value rather than for battle and likely carried by unit commanders.
There has been some debate on the Forum as to when & where and for whom these swords were made. Jim is much more knowledgeable on this than I am.
I tend to think these swords had a kind of "Lost Cause" quality to them, but I have no evidence of this. Not even sure why I mentioned it.
Regards,
Ed
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