Important Islamic Saber Attributed To Sidi Amor - Tunisia, Kairouan, 1st Half 19th Century

Important Islamic saber attributed to Sidi Amor - Tunisia, Kairouan, 1st half of the 19th century Large and heavy saber (138cm, 11kg) with a hilt with two wooden plates formerly stained green and a blade in wrought iron alloy engraved with Islamic Kufic calligraphy for propitiatory purposes. Acquired on the Swiss art market, this saber is likely part of the corpus of oversized sabers forged by the famous marabout Sidi Amor also known as Sidi Amor Abbada al-Ayari (?-1855). Sidi Amor, originally from the Makhtar region, was a marabout, a Muslim spiritual man and blacksmith known for his creations of oversized objects, including sabers, chests, naval anchors... In 1872, a zaouia (mausoleum) was erected in Kairouan to house the tomb of Sidi Amor. Today, this mausoleum is converted into a museum and houses objects made by the marabout, including several sabers similar to this one. In France, two sabers of Sidi Amor are kept in museums; one is in the Louvre (inventory number AFI 533 b) and indicated as coming from the mosque of sabers, Zawiya Sidi Abada (mausoleum of Sidi Amor), the other in the army museum (see The bladed weapons of the Islamic world by AlainJacob, page 54). The saber in the army museum was probably acquired following the capture of Kairouan by the French forces in 1881 and the attack on the great mosque. A similar saber was also sold at auction at Christie's in London on April 1, 2021 under lot number 6. https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6308159 Total length 138cm Blade length 107.5cm Weight approximately 11kg