Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

ariel · 22nd February 2020, 11:53 AM

Stu,
Thanks for the information.
How does the bare wood look?

The chape is set under some angle, suggesting that the original scabbard and blade for which it was created were not straight but curved. If my visual impression is correct, either the scabbard parts do not belong to the original, or the blade was replaced. Taking into account the difference in the decorative motives between the handle and the scabbard elements, I favor both.

Caucasian shashkas were almost universally slightly curved. This one is straight. European blade?

After exile of Circassian in the 1860s into the Ottoman lands, shashkas were mass produced there with noticeable modifications , different decorations etc. Many examples were worn edge down, saber like. True Caucasian blades were almost invariably marked by a stamp of the master. A straight and unmarked blade suggests not Caucasian origin.

Shashkas can be crudely divided into two groups: Caucasian and Asian type.
In the former, the handle went down deep into the scabbard, so that only the pommel remained visible. In the latter, the handle was flush with the throat.

The “Asian” type was a later construction, likely of a Russian origin, widely used in the regulation army models.

Original Caucasian ( native) shashkas were practically always of the former type. That is yet another hint that yours is not a genuine native Caucasian type.

All together, I tend to believe that yours is a very late composite creation, either Russian or Turkish. Its age might be better reflected by the condition of the wooden component. Earlier examples would have extremely thin ( paper thin in fact )wooden “walls” due to multiple repeated insertions and withdrawals of the blade and the wood would be very dark and stained by oiling, moisture etc. I can’t remember where I read it, but Russian military regulations for Cossack shashkas specified a new scabbard every 3 years.

Again, all handmade weapons are unique by definition. Anything and everything mentioned here might be counter- argued by a genuine example with similar features. But IMHO there are far too many inconsistencies here to define this shashka as a fully original Caucasian weapon.

22nd February 2020, 11:53 AM	#20
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Stu, Thanks for the information. How does the bare wood look? The chape is set under some angle, suggesting that the original scabbard and blade for which it was created were not straight but curved. If my visual impression is correct, either the scabbard parts do not belong to the original, or the blade was replaced. Taking into account the difference in the decorative motives between the handle and the scabbard elements, I favor both. Caucasian shashkas were almost universally slightly curved. This one is straight. European blade? After exile of Circassian in the 1860s into the Ottoman lands, shashkas were mass produced there with noticeable modifications , different decorations etc. Many examples were worn edge down, saber like. True Caucasian blades were almost invariably marked by a stamp of the master. A straight and unmarked blade suggests not Caucasian origin. Shashkas can be crudely divided into two groups: Caucasian and Asian type. In the former, the handle went down deep into the scabbard, so that only the pommel remained visible. In the latter, the handle was flush with the throat. The “Asian” type was a later construction, likely of a Russian origin, widely used in the regulation army models. Original Caucasian ( native) shashkas were practically always of the former type. That is yet another hint that yours is not a genuine native Caucasian type. All together, I tend to believe that yours is a very late composite creation, either Russian or Turkish. Its age might be better reflected by the condition of the wooden component. Earlier examples would have extremely thin ( paper thin in fact )wooden “walls” due to multiple repeated insertions and withdrawals of the blade and the wood would be very dark and stained by oiling, moisture etc. I can’t remember where I read it, but Russian military regulations for Cossack shashkas specified a new scabbard every 3 years. Again, all handmade weapons are unique by definition. Anything and everything mentioned here might be counter- argued by a genuine example with similar features. But IMHO there are far too many inconsistencies here to define this shashka as a fully original Caucasian weapon.