Original Item: One-of-a-kind. In the 1880's the SUDAN the vast land just south of Egypt was ruled by the Khedive from Cairo. Sudan was basically occupied by native Africans in the south and Arab traders in the north. The coming of the Muslim religious leader known as the "Mahdi" unified the population into an uprising against Egypt.

Britain assisted and allowed General Charles Gordon to become the Governor of Sudan on behalf of the Egyptian Khedive. The result was that after a long siege the entire Khartoum garrison, including General Charles Gordon, was butchered leading to much embarrassment for the British Government. It took 14 years, until 1898, for General Gordon to be avenged with the complete destruction of the Muslim Army at the Battle of Omdurman.

The Mahdi army, numbering over 100,000, was made up of many tribes of various origins and used primitive broad swords fashioned on those the European Crusaders had carried back in the 13th and 14th centuries. These were known as Kaskaras and were carried along with a large shield.

This has to be by far the most exciting Dervish Kaskara sword we've ever encountered! Assembled circa 1880, this was almost certainly taken by a British soldier after the battle of Omdurman in 1898. It features a leather bound grip with a leather disc pommel surrounded by horn strapping on the exterior. It has a standard “Crusader” iron crossguard mounted onto the most wonderful very old German broadsword blade we have ever encountered. The blade is double edged with a single broad fuller down each side and measures 35", with an overall length of 40".

The blade is classically engraved down each side for 7" depicting "the man in the moon, a sunburst with a face to center, and a six armed star. Best of all we know the origin of this blade as being signature work of Peter Munich of Solingen, Germany, who worked from 1595 until his death in 1660. A renowned blade maker of his era, from the legendary “City of Blades” in western Germany.

Dervishes descend from technologically primitive nomadic peoples, who thrived in the desert environment of the middle east. Using swords taken from the crusaders mated with their own style of hilt, the fashion did not change for 500-600 years. European traders provided them with any discarded and obsolete broadsword blades that they could find, yet only this magnificent example identifying the maker has ever crossed our path.

A true work of art which would be at home in any edged weapon collection. Ready to display!

The Sudanese Wars are famously remembered in the movies too: Charlton Heston in "KHARTOUM" and in at least two productions of "THE FOUR FEATHERS". The close of the Victorian era was the height of the Great British Empire. A British soldier's bring back souvenir from his times on the front line.

Dimensions:
Blade length: 35”
Blade Style: Double Edged Broadsword
Overall length: 40”
Crossguard: 6 1/2”

The Kaskara was a type of sword characteristic of Sudan, Chad, and Eritrea. The blade of the kaskara was usually about a yard long, double edged and with a spatulate tip. While most surviving examples are from the 19th century the type is believed to have originated around the early 14th century, and may represent a localized survival of the straight, double-edged medieval Arab sword. The kaskara was worn horizontally across the back or between the upper arm and thorax. According to British Museum curator Christopher Spring, "in the central and eastern Sudan, from Chad through Darfur and across to the Red Sea province, the straight, double-edged swords known as kaskara were an essential possession of most men."