The Manding sword, the Tuareg aljuinar and Omani curved kattara: Are they connected?

[CharlesS]

Jim,

I think the "zig-zags" you are referring to is Churchill's rendering of the cords that bind the top and bottom "heads" of what is often called the "talking drum" and is seen through large swaths of Africa. Of course, I may be wrong.

This is, again, the problem with artists' renderings. Much is left up to perceptions and even the imagination, especially in a drawing as generalized as that one.