Thanks to everyone of you for your intest and opinion.
What bugs me a bit, is the complete absense of markings: to my knowledge, most, if not all mass-produced military blades carried manufacturers' IDs.
Second, passing the blade between the fingers, it has irregular "bumps" in thickness: that makes me believe it was hand-made.
Third, I went through my ( limited) supply of books on European blades 19-20 centuries and could not find an analogue.
Fourth, the Bessemer theory is interesting: but were there mass-produced Bessemer blades?Where, what pattern, similar to this one?
Overall, I get a feeling it is not a standard, regimented saber blade, but rather an experimental, one-of-a-kind pattern.
As you see, I shamelessly try to sway your opinion toward it being wootz-y. I really want to have an example of Anosov's sword :-)
But go ahead, disabuse me of my notion.....
|