Arab Cutlasses of the Pirate Coast

[TVV]

When it comes to pirates, the North African corsairs seem to be the only group that developed a distinct weapon - the nimchas from the 17th and 18th century, which Eric Claude classifies as Algerian. We have multiple examples in European museums with pirate provenance that all share a common type unique to the Barbary coast. This was possible because piracy was a state sponsored activity there and these pirates had all kinds of infrastructure ashore, including the necessary workshops (even if the blades were predominantly imports).

Other pirates who did not enjoy land based support on a similar scale did not really have the resources or ability to focus on developing their own edged weapons, but rather equipped themselves as best as they could, often from a multitude of sources. In the case of the Qasimi pirates, proximity to Oman means Omani weapons would have been the easiest to obtain. It is interesting that in the photographs the Qasimi leaders wear the long, conical hilt swords as these seem like the least suitable for boarding fights from the Omani panoply, with both the older, shorter swords and the Omani/Zanzibari nicmhas looking like much better options, but the photographic evidence is what it is and if they used other weapons in earlier times, we do not have any pictures.

Finally, when it comes to the nimcha like hilt, the Yemeni version seems like a cruder, simplified interpretation of the Oman/Zanzibar one, which leads me to think that it was copied from Oman and adopted in Yemen in the late 19th, early 20th century at the earliest.

[Jim McDougall]

Thanks very much Teo, so the Moroccan/Algerian sa'if which has long been established as the weapon of the Barbary corsairs is pretty much the single 'pirate' oriented sword of 'Arab' form. (illustration 1)

I see what you mean on the Yemeni/ Zanzibar (Oman) form sa'if (like #1 commonly termed nimcha), cruder and simpler. These hilts actually seem cast.

The conical Omani sa'ifs as noted (my example #3 is pretty rough) were it seems often highly embellished, silvered etc. as worn in a status oriented sense. In research a number of years ago, as per burton (1885) and Demmin (1877) these were entirely unlikely as combat weapons.

However the similar conical hilted examples with curved blades (usually German) were. These were the actual 'kitara' swords (illustr. #4).

I agree with your observations on these Omani forms being most likely in the Hormuz, Muscat areas, and if any of the Yemeni forms did find use there it was surely incidental. Thank you again, well explained insights!

[Peter Hudson]

Jim this is an excellent topic. The wide blade in the Moplah style is fascinating.

I think this is an important design transfer dating before the rule of Saaid The Great. I think that the hilts are also similar to the Nimchas from both Zanzibar and Morrocco. In my view I suspect that the Omani Navy used the Zanzibari Nimcha format for weapons probably Naval Officers dress Swords long before the appearance of Saaid the Great in about 1806....It may be remembered that he influenced weapon designs on Omani Khanjars of the Al Saaidi style and reformatted the hilts of Sayf Yemaani ....Other designs such as the Cummerbund and Turban are also down to him and of course the Omaani Sayf ...a straight bladed conical Hilt with very flexible blade and perhaps 30 years later the sister to it The Omani Kittara with the curved blade and identical Hilt from Bunyoro-Kittara in The Great Lakes ....In pointing to the Moplah style of blade you indicate a valuable and entirely plausible case for the Moplah to have influenced Nimcha blade design right through the region ... Thanks Jim ... Excellent indeed!...
Peter Hudson

[Jim McDougall]

Its great to have you come in on this Peter!
The 'moplah' type blade does have pretty old ancestry as per many of the references, Elgood notes it as 17-18th c. and it seems "Arts of the Muslim Knight" has these shown (need to find the photos).

It seems one of these (with the Maghrebi style guard system,as pictured below) was captured by Thomas Hopsonn in 1676 from an Algerian corsair. It seems this further supports the Yemeni associations noted by Lofty and Teo on these weapon types, and with these 'Moplah'(?) influenced blades.

In this, there is still a bit of potential for a 'piracy' connection with these two examples, tenuous though it may be. The hilts are clearly far more recent, however the blades resembling the earlier types noted may well have been circulating in these earlier times.

In that case, the regions of North Africa where the Sale' Rovers operated from that city/state in Morocco, as well as the notorious Barbary corsairs from the various Barbary states 17th into 18th c.

It is surprising to know that many of these 'pirates' were actually former European privateers, who moved into these regions in peace time to carry on with their 'trade'. Usually these men converted to Islam and took new names.

As with the often far ranging regions where these groups of 'pirates' operated, along with the complex trade networks which were present through all these areas, the diffusion of weapon forms must have been remarkable.

With that ratiocination, there are of course many possibilities.
Still, by the numbers, the suggestions for probable 'pirate coast' (eastern Arabia) connected to Oman and the 'Barbary Coast' (North Africa) and its connection to Yemen (S. Arabia) seem most plausible.

[Jim McDougall]

On the 'kitara' sword, which is the saber bladed form of the conical Omani sa'if, it seems the rather thickly wrapped leather grip would be hard to hold unless with two hands, much in the way the larger conical grip broadsword of Oman is used.

It seems likely the Zanzibari versions of 'nimcha' coming into Oman from Zanzibar might well have found use to the northern Muscati regions. These would of course lent to the single hand use of the nimchas of North Africa/Yemen?

[TVV]

Jim, the nimcha you have posted is the one from the collcetion of the Met in New York. It belongs to a type of which there are multiple examples, including one captured by the great Dutch admiral De Ruuyter in 1655, a couple in the Real Armeria reportedly from the battle of Oran in 1732, as well as other examples without provenance or dating in Malta, St. Petersburg and private collections.

Hopsonn's nimcha currently in the Maritime Museum in Greenwich is slightly different, as you can see on the attached photo of it, but generally from the same time period and just of a slightly different grip style. it is similar to another nimcha in the Rijksmuseum that belonged to Cornelis Tromp.

Personally, I do not quite see the connection to the moplah/adya katti. The Moplah cleavers have the cutting edge on the opposite side. On nimchas the blade seems much more likely to have derived from the Italian storta and the Ottoman and Mameluke blades (the yelman part).

[TVV]

Here is a link to the storta in the Met Museum, dated to ca. 1490. It is often shown as a sort of a predecessor to nimchas, and one can certainly see some similarities.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/24904

I am not aware of any nicmhas that predate this storta. The earliest nimcha is potentially an example in the Hofburg Imperial Armory with a straight broadsword blade and gilded mounts in Ottoman style. At least Eric Claude dates it to the 16th century. The nimchas in Malta are almost certainly not from the Great Siege, but from later naval engagements (the knights were just as much into piracy as their Ottoman and North African adversaries).

All in all, Anthony North's theory all the way back from the 70s that the nimcha derives from the storta still seems the most plausible to me today, at least when it comes to the blade and guard, while also accounting for Ottoman influence. The grip is more mysterious and that may actually have South-East Asian influences, if not origin, but that is a different topic.

[Jim McDougall]

Thank you Teo, I think you're right, the storta, with this interesting hilt form reveals the kind of guard system seen on the nimchas. I think this was discussed by the late Tony North in his article "A Late 15th Century Italian Sword" (Connoisseur, Dec. 1975).
The blade types as you say probably do derive from falchion types of these early times, and the 'moplah' thing is more comparative for the heavier flare distally. I have always wondered just how much of the flared blade came from falchions, as well as the widened blade yelman, then of course the Meditteranean kopis (which indeed had the inside cutting edge) all of these features having varied considerations.

It has always seemed that the Italian influences on the edged weapons of so many places have been profound because of the prolific trade contacts, so much so I was compelled to buy the huge "Armi Bianchi Italiene" volume (1975) . In studying the development of so many forms, the Italian ancestry being so consistent, it was essential.

[A.alnakkas]

I remember emailing you images of an 'Algerian' nimcha that was found in Yemen with later Yemeni mounts. It was restored but I shall upload the before and after images upon receiving it. Perhaps the mariners had influence on Yemen which explains the high usage of short blades.



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[A.alnakkas]

Here are the images. Note that the nimcha will have further restorations to the hilt with MoP and coral. though my restorer will confirm if its a viable option or will negatively effects the handle.

This particular example has two lockets which is odd, the older having Ottoman style niello work over a later, 19th century Yemeni locket (matches the chape and carrying rings) so this likely had quite a journey. The blades on both examples are short cutlass type.

[A.alnakkas]

Images of the nimcha hilt

[Jim McDougall]

These are great examples Lofty! and its amazing to see them restored.
I think the hardest thing in describing these variations in the spectrum of Arabian sa'if is the terms used for them. Though often not linguistically or geographically correct , these typically serve well semantically in specifying which form or example is being referred to.

The term 'nimcha' is of course seems the most broadly used for most of these from Moroccan (and Algerian), to Zanzibari, but then these 'pistol gripped' types which are basically the same as the others with sort of a canted pommel, seem to fall into what was regarded as from Hadramaut. Naturally these are actually Yemeni, but for some time I thought that was more correct.

Of course I recognize the silver banded, and distinctive silvered throat and chape, and realized some time ago that Yemeni was more properly used.

Good point on the probable influence of mariners likely impacting the use of shorter and somewhat heavier blades in regions where their ports of call would be a source for weaponry as well as trade goods.

By analogy, the Spanish colonial espada ancha, the shorter, heavy bladed hanger used largely in utility use for brushing trails etc. actually evolved from hangers and cutlasses from vessels arriving in ports in New Spain. The cutlasses used on ships, while obviously used in combat if necessary, also served mostly in mundane services on board and notably ashore , where they became 'machetes' in cutting through thick vegetation .