Original Victorian Era East African Seme Sword from the Maasai People - c.1860
Item Description
Original Item: Only One Available. This is a typical item brought back by a British Trooper returning from one of Queen Victoria's little Wars of the second half of the 1800's. The Maasai were a "tall" people, occupying what we today know as KENYA on Africa's East Coast. This style of sword however could also be found among other groups in the region. Known as a MAASAI Seme Sword, these were the constant sidearm of the Maasai man. Typically, the Seme (or Sime) is a light short sword with a double-edged, leaf-shaped spatulate blade, made from spring steel. The Maasai use this blade for everything from clearing brush, butchering cattle, to peeling fruit. They also use it for self defense.
As typical of the design, there is no hand guard on this example, which has a 22" leaf shaped Blade. At the handle it is only about 3/4" across, but increases in width to around 1 3/4 inches about 2 inches from the tip. Together with the leather-covered turned wood grip of 6 1/2", this Seme has an overall length of 28 1/2" .
It is amazingly effective having such a weight to the front of the blade, though it does present balance issues. When razor sharp this could cause substantial damage to any enemy or to heavy foliage.
From the land of LIVINGSTON and STANLEY, at the time Africa was being opened up to the civilized world. Ready to display!
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