New sword from balkan for Identification
 

Hello,
i got those 2 swords for identification .
One look like a small yatagan knife.
The other i dont know, yatagan style blade but i never saw this !
Thx for your help !

Hello Daniel,

The long one does appear to be a yataghan. I think the type of rust on this piece has been purposefully done to make the blade look like a relic. I bought a similar one once and the blade was heavily pitted because of it.

The smaller one is a karakulak, a yataghan-like knife, fairly common in the Balkans I believe. Since the scroll-work decoration on the blade continues almost to the tip I think the blade is re-profiled from a larger one, and it looks like re-hardened. Nice beefy piece!

Emanuel

you mean the long one is a replica ? i think it is too !
the other i think is original but not very old !
what you think about the age of those sword ?

Hello Daniel,

I did not say it was a replica and I don't think it is. The blade might be very genuine, just altered. The guard is not original of course, so that might have been added. On the whole I'd say it is an old blade that was changed at some time. You can tell better than I can how the blade is made. Does it taper correctly?

As I understand it the yataghan stopped being used as a functional weapon at the turn of the 20th century. Shepherds and peasants might have continued using the karakulak and might still make them. The blades seem older though so who knows? early 20th century? The scroll-work on the small one make me think it's older.

Perhaps forum member Teodor (TVV) can chime in on this.

Emanuel

Hi, DanielUka,
My name is also Daniel :)
The sword from the first picture is a Balkan yataghan, which grip is revamped late, it is not the original one. Such swords you may find in Bulgaria-revamped or with grips/handles made in a hurry as people had to be supplied with swords very quickly during the Bulgarian April Uprising in 1876. I am not sure where this swords originates from, but it was made/revamped in the same way.
As far as the second picture is concerned - it is a typical karakulak, as the missing grip of the sword was made by a buffalo horn.
Here I send pictures of my collection of karakulas, so if you decide you may recover the missing grips/handles.
Best regards,
Dandi

Very nice collection daniel ! they look like bosnian bichaq !