This article was recently spurred to fruition by the submission of a reader’s photograph taken in the city of Ar-Raqqa, Syria. The subject of the photo features a prominent rear sight base of an AKMS-patterned rifle with Eastern Arabic numerical markings. Important to our discussion is the origin of this particular rifle because one would be led to the conclusion that from the photograph alone, it might be an Egyptian 7.62x39mm Maadi rifle from the rear sight markings. However, our source on the ground informs us (albeit without photographs) that the rifle is in fact of Polish origin with the “Circle 11” marked trunnion. This post will explore the difference in rear markings between Polish export KbK AKM-patterned rifles and Egyptian Maadi rifles, in addition to looking at some of the U.S. reproductions. The importance of comparing these rear sights is that these three varieties are some of the only major categories of Kalashnikov-patterned rifles with rear sight designations in Eastern Arabic numerals. Unlike Western Arabic numerical font stampings, the fluid curvature found in Arabic-based fonts across the world allows for a greater degree of variety and thus gives us easier clues for identification based on rear sight range designations.