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Old 23rd September 2019, 04:08 PM   #7
Jim McDougall
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Route 66
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Thank you guys for the analysis of these calligraphic inscriptions. As mentioned earlier, these inscriptions, in the style of decorative motif, were intended to literally cover the blade, thus the perceived talismanic imbuement.
The phrases are often from Quranic verses, and perhaps dates in a commemorative sense. It seems there have been other interpretations analyzing these scripts which include dates not consistent with the period of the Mahdiyya, in which these weapons originate.
As Khartoum was originally the center of the Mahdist movement after its capture in 1885, it is likely it may be included in these wordings.
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