Markings on a Takouba-mounted European Backsword

[blue lander]

I assume those carvings were added when this was converted to a Takouba, but I suppose there's no proof they weren't original...

[Jim McDougall]

It seems to me that this well patinated blade is certainly European and in my view of 18th c. That it is a straight backsword with these numerous fullers suggests to me it is Italian. While cavalry blades of the time were straight backsword type, and often Solingen, these triple fullers were usually on sabre blades at the back of the blade, but not that I recall on British or German.
The schiavona was used as a cavalry sword much more widely than often realized, using back sword blades well into the 19th century.

The letters used in this inscription seem too disassembled to have been an originally applied marking, and the letters 'N' are backwards, in Italy other inscriptions show the 'N' marked correctly. The triple dots are of course a well known component on European swords in groupings such as the well known 'sickle' marks.

The 'snake' with dots is also a known motif on European blades, but usually on the blade only.
This area of the blade to me looks like an 'adabal', a metal plate sandwiched at the ricasso of takoubas in many cases, and the application of these European markings along with the letters etc. seem more convincingly a pastiche by a native artisan.

While the matching of known Italian names of cities etc, is of course tempting to the unusually formed lettering, it is important to note that there was a long standing penchant with some Italian makers in earlier times to use groupings of incongruent letters in marking blades. In these cases, makers such as Caino and Picinino placed these in arranged sequences,
but seemed to make no sense.
While these may have been acrostics, as often done with invocations, some have never been interpreted.

[blue lander]

between the regular ricasso and the sandwiched bit, the original ricasso on this blade would have been about 5 inches long!

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Lopoking across the broad variety of alphabets I see that the Majescule A occurs in Coptic. The reverse N in Tuareg and the 3 dots in ...

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Lopoking across the broad variety of alphabets I see that the Majescule A occurs in Coptic. The reverse N in Tuareg \tifinaghe and the 3 dots. I seem to get the impression that any sequence of capitals will suffice and letters and numerals from a mixture of countries across the broad sweep of Tuareg domains was possible...

[Jim McDougall]

WOW!
Good catch Ibrahiim!!
There is that curious N in Tifinagh, and the others. That would explain these lettering anomalies which are found on numerous 'nimcha' blades as well as others in Saharan context.
The squiggled lines and dots are found on Sudanese blades in various cases as the snake (python) is key in certain symbolisms.

Well done......excellent research, thank you

[blue lander]

Very interesting angle on the alphabet it might be in.

I cleaned the blade up a bit - it's starting to look like that second character is just an M with a bit of corrosion.

Also, I've uncovered two half circles between the clusters of dots. I think they're eyelashes but I suppose the could be half moons. There isn't much left of them.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

This is excellent news showing Latten style inlaid hogsbacks which would usually be European crafted ? .... I'm not sure about the M as it appears to be the Majescule A. Naturally a sword could arrive with marks already completed and then added to by African smiths...
For sure the ADABAL is decorated in snake forms ...commonly seen in these West African decorations...i think in Ashanti design...although it can be imagines that a line up of snakes in front of the crossguard would afford some mystical Talismanic protection to the sword hand...
The three dot accompanied in the eyelash or hogs back also happens to be an Hausa letter k .

In conclusion it appears that some parallel exists between North African design and the influx of European blades and that Tuareg and others seeing the similarity in design have been inspired to copy in their well known counterparts including some of their decorative alphabet capitals... I illustrate the last point with a chart showing a very similar letter to the European Fly mark...Third row second from the end and the cross and orb on line two...