This is an interesting thread. Brings back lots of memories.
I am intrigued by Mark's sword. It is stylistically unique, at least to me. I am not familiar with the style of grip and handle. Also, the long piece perpendicular to the cross guard (don't know its technical name) appears to be riveted to the grip and due to its length must have been forge welded to the cross piece. The gross piece itself is tapered and appears to be of good quality and maybe early 19th Century.
The blade is also interesting. I agree with you Mark that it just looks old. The small missing peace appears to be an old chip-out possible from being struck from another sword. It some how looks thicker than many I have seen and may have been made from wrought iron, thus not an imported trade blade. Many of the native Sudanese blades of the Mahdi period and well before were brittle and broke during battle. It could well be an heirloom blade done up in more modern livery
As has been noted several times on the Forum, we have no good means to date blades. The oldest kaskara I know of with attribution are museum pieces reputed to have belonged to Ali Dinar around 1821, I think. That blade is presumably imported. Maker's marks are of some help since the "maker" has a known production life span, but many marks are copied or intrepeted locally as those posts discuss above.
Perhaps we can develop a data base of metallurgical analysis. This may be difficult with collector pieces in that investigation leaves a mark about the size of a dime. Photomicrographs requires an etching and polishing a small portion of the blade, but the crystaline structure of the blade can be very telling. Is it wrought iron, mild steel, carbon steel, other alloy steel? Was it work hardened or quenched and tempered or just quenched? My knowledge is limited to memories of metallurgical course some 50 years ago, but I enjoyed the lab work.
The watershed in native Sudanese blade materials came with the British occupation and railroad construction after 1899 when modern steel became available locally and in large amounts. At least in 1986 and probably before Kassala blades were made from lorry leaf springs. This material no doubt has a metallurgical signature, likewise do Soligen and other import blades as well as wrought iron. I have seen demonstrations of leaf spring Kassala blades being bent almost double and spring back without any evidence of set. (The process can be tricky and dangerous if you don't have the knack.) Also, by holding the blade pointed up it can be shook rapidly and seem to quiver in your hand. Will older European blades, perhaps not made of spring steeel do that?
Who on the forum has metallurgical expertise and maybe a metallurgical microscope and Brinnel hardness tester, and who has blades that they would be willing to suffer a polished spot as a sample? Perhaps we could do a workshop next year at Timonium with esperts who knows what they are talking about. Certainly not me.
Regards,
Ed
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