Double katars are marked
 

Did you know, that double katars are marked?
The scabbard for the inner blade, the outer blade, is made so that only if the inner blade is scabbard in one way can it be scabbard. If the inner katar is turned, it can’t be scabbard. The guide how to scabbard the inner katar lays in the design on top of the side guards, make sure that the design on top of both side guards fit, it can also be two dots – when this two ‘patterns’ fits, the two katars can be scabbard.

YOU DON'T SEE MANY DOUBLE KATARS AND EVEN FEWER AS NICE AS THESE TWO. I ASSUME THE SMALLER SLIDES INSIDE AND UNDER THE GRIPS OF THE LARGER MAKEING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO PUT THEM TOTALLY TOGETHER THE WRONG WAY EVEN IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE MARKINGS. IS THAT THE WAY IT WORKS OR IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET THEM IN WRONG AND POSSIBLY JAM THEM?

What a beautiful set!

I suspect this has something to do with the workmanship and effort involved. Those are beautifully decorated, and it would require that both sides be identical to allow them to be interchangeable. Jens, are simple, unadorned katar of this form made similarly?


Jens, your photography is fantastic. Are you taking these photos yourself? :)

Vandoo if you try to put the two katars together in any other way than in the right way, you will jam them, and they can be very difficult to take apart again. I know it, be course I learned it the hard way.
On one of the pictures you will see the end of the side guards (the picture is not very sharp – sorry), please notice that on the one side the top it covered with cold on both side guards, and on the other side there is no gold.
Please notice that on this katar shown the inner and outer blades are/look the same, but on the katar shown before the two blade are quite different, both in looks and in age.

And another picture.

Btw. the inner blade is 0,5 cm thick and the outer blade 1,2 cm thick.

Jens

This is amazing... another example of 'precision engineering' in antiques! The double katars are meant to be used in pairs, I presume, but wouldn't the dis-similar size make them more difficult to use/get used to?

Btw, another example of such "precision engineering" in antiques that comes to mind are moro krises -- the way the ganja fits seamlessly to the blade such that in many examples, one would have thought they were one continuous piece with the blades.

Yes it is true the Indian craftsmen were/are masters in precision. I guess the idea must have been that when/if the outer katar, which is not sharp, but have a very thick blade, got stuck between two ribs; you could draw the inner katar. Notice that it is not the same katar shown, the first have an older inner blade, and the second one has an inner blade made at the same time as the outer blade.
Here is another example of precision work, the two blades are parted in the middle.