Mandinka Sword
Mandinka People
French West African Region - The Gambia Colony and Protectorate (The Gambia) - French Guinea (Guinea) - Portuguese Guinea (Guinea) - French Sudan (Mali) - Senegambia ( Senegal - Gambia) - Ivory Coast
Late 19th - Early 20th century (ca. 1890 - 1920)
Steel, leather, brass
Blade: 60,1cm
Hilt & Blade: 76,8cm
Hilt, Blade, Sheath: 78,7
Collection Date: 2022
Collection Number: 267

One of the sword types of the Mandinka People spanning the vast region of West Africa. The example here with a single- edged steel blade of European origin, likely French or English. There are undeciphered engraved cursive letter script on each side of the blade, with one side also having an engraved crown. Single, broad fuller spanning 3/4 length of the sword near the spine.

Hilt decorated in tooled leather with a brass pommel prong and cap.. Decorative tooled leather sheath with beautiful woven yellow plaited pattern design. Excellent example of expressive traditional Mandinka leatherwork and geometric embroidery paired with an old European blade.

• Fischer, Werner. Zirngibl, Manfred. “African Weapons”. 1978. Page 22, Cat. 20

• Spring, Christopher. “African Arms and Armor”. 1993. Page 40 (Info.)

• https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/316828

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• http://oriental-arms.co.il/item.php?id=2357

• http://oriental-arms.co.il/item.php?id=815

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• https://www.quaibranly.fr/en/explore-collections/base/Work/action/show/notice/367982-sabre-et-son-fourreau/page/11/

• http://www.africanarms.com/gallery?mandingo-sabre-82-cm

• http://vikingsword.com/lew/w0108/w0108.html