Turkic Auxiliary, Tang Dynasty-8th century Anxi Garrison 突厥辅兵♢安西
A Turkic auxiliary horseman in heavy armor serving the Tang Army, 8th century. He wears heavy Tang lamellar armor and helmet but carries a Turkic bow and saber, which were made of pattern welded high carbon crucible steel, generally with long slightly curved blades with one sharp edge and outward jutting guards. Many Turkic tribes served the Tang either as allies or directly as soldiers, some, like the Shatuo Turks even went on to claim whole provinces after the Tang disintegrated.
Heavy Tang dynasty armor.
Map of the 10 major Jiedushi and their military strengths during Emperor Xuanzong's reign (as of 745 AD.) The Anxi Protectorate guards the Tarim Basin while Beiting Protectorate guards the north of the Anxi Protectorate.
Agate rhython with strong Central Asian influence, according
to curators the cup was able to change color if the wine was
poisoned. Currently housed in the Shaanxi Museum
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Comments
What do you think about this?
But the curvature of the blade~ it serves horsemen well, gives extra room incase the initial cut missed its mark. So I very much think that the Tang swords were influenced by the Turkic people, or if not the Turkic people other steppe peoples.
Remember that the Japanese initially used these swords for heir horsemen as well. The first samurai were foremost mounted archers.
Curved swords also gets carried over to the Turkish MENA polities, combined with Persian and Indian influences.