Any ideas to this blade?
Hello to all of you!
Iīm new here and have registered at this forum, because I hope to get some informations about this blade: It somehow came into the possession of my grandparents in the turmoil after the 2nd World War. Today there is nobody left who knows anything definite about it.

* The blade is 94cm long, 4.5cm wide, about 4mm thin and has a tang of 7cm. Itīs relatively flexible.
* There are 5 fullers: The middle one is about half the length of the blade, the outer ones are about 30cm long.
* The hilt is missing.
* It was propably made/used in the Austrian-Czech-border area.

Unfortunately, adding attachements to this message did not work. You can see the photos at:
https://www.asuswebstorage.com/navigate/s/21416788AF8E4E7C80CB33624B2DD8A34

I suspect itīs some kind of replica for decoration, maybe from the late 19th or early 20th century, and was lost in the chaos of the collapsing Nazi-Germany. So Iīm afraid this blade is not precious at all... ;-)

Does someone have any ideas about it?
Have a nice evening
M.Klopf
Sorry friend, but your link isn't working. Perhaps you should consult an administrator about the attachment requirements?
I think it's a kaskara blade. The kaskara is the classic sword of the eastern Sahara/Sahel. The blade shape, fullers, and tang length, shape, and rivet hole all match.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaskara

See http://www.swordforum.com/forums/showthread.php?116402-Kaskara for an example. More, including a discussion of the rivet hole: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=8269
I think you are right! Itīs a Kaskara!
Poor blade! So far away from home... ;)

Thanks to all for helping me! :)
Not necessarily away from home!
Plenty of kaskara blades were made in Germany (as well as England) for trade in Sudan.
Although the overall appearance suggest is was once mounted as a kaskara - the rough shoulders near the tang, and the rivet hole.
I can't tell whether it's an imported or African-made blade (due to the condition). The fullers are very straight - some African-made swords would be identifiable as such even with the blade this corroded due to non-straight fullers. But others have straighter fullers.
Yes, the fullers are very straight - and there are 5 of them, instead of the (more) usual 3, in that blade form.
Such blades were sometimes misused for fake katzblagers.
Very interesting...
I tried to clean the blade last weekend and found 4 small engraved crescents. Each one of them is directly over the two short fullers.
I think such astrological symbols are quite common on Kaskaras, or not?
Yes, paired crescent moons are common. IIRC, they were originally a Solingen maker's mark.

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