Dom,
Thank you very much. Why do you think the maker was Armenian? The name Zarif certainly sounds Arabic in origin. The Shiite attribution makes perfect sense, as the blade looks Persian made to me based on the shape, the wootz and the lion stamp. I wonder on the inscription was placed at the base for the originally intended owner, or if such inscriptions were standard on Persian made blades.
Thank you again,
Teodor
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