A large gun with English flintlock mechanism, as favored by the Mirs of the Talpur court. In very good…

Sheathed 81.5 cm
Saber 78 cm
65.3 cm
Base 8 mm
Middle 8 mm
Start backedge 5 mm
5 cm from tip 4 mm
Base 40 mm
Middle 35.5 mm
Start backedge 37.5 mm
5 cm from tip 27 mm
911 grams
15.2 cm from hilt
Steel, iron, wood, leather, brass
Afghanistan
Marked 1908-1909
European antiques market
Description
An Afghan military pattern saber with a very good blade. The blade is broad, with a strong ricasso. Two wide and deep fillers lighten the blade all the way into the tip. It has a long semi-sharp back bevel that gets sharper as it approaches the tip.
The hilt is made of iron with two hardwood grip scales. It has an iron handguard in a European-inspired style. The scabbard is made of two halves of wood, covered with black leather. It has a mouthpiece and chape, all of substantial iron.
All parts are well finished and the sword is a very exact fit in its scabbard. Even though it's a relatively standard pattern military sword, there is lots of attention to detail in the execution of the various parts.
A very solid piece with a great balance.
Marking
There is a stamp at the base of the blade:

This is the seal of the Emirate of Afghanistan (1842-1926), depicting the mihrab (prayer niche) and the minbar (the Imam's pulpit) of a Mosque. Under that is a number 1326, referring to Hijri 1326, corresponding to 1908-1909 in the Gregorian calendar.
This seal is often explained as being the "Mazir-i-Sharif stamp" due to its resemblance to the Blue Mosque in Mazir-i-Sharif, but this likeness is merely coincidental. It is the general seal of Afghanistan, and was used to mark government property. It appears as such on both locally made weapons and imported ones. The seal also appears on Afghan coinage of the same period.















These mysterious weapons were already obsolete when the first ethnographers encountered them.
Inspired by uchigatana brought into Vietnam by Japanese refugees who settled along the coast.
The hilt is in the typical Marwari Rajput style, made by Ram Namar in 1857 A.D.
With an inscription alluding to it having belonged to the son of Tipu Sultan.