yes jens, a piece that truly demands respect.
jim, a great assessment as always. the piece harbours all the asthetics of northern india in the 18thC, and yet the blade shape seems to be remeniscent of an much earlier period. the late 16thC miniatures lavishly depict the 'transitional' tulwar, developed from the infusion of the persianised, turkic culture of the moghul inheritance with the raw, earthy hindu culture. these blades seemed to mostly hold long blades with a pronounced curve and a definate yemen. these were shown alongside the clearer 'persian' hilt and the influence is very apparant (ie the blades were almost the same). although the moghul emperor gathered the best artisans of the time (norht and south), whether from his own culture or of the one one existed in the lands he conquered, the development was different in the south. the late 16thC deccani miniatures, which clearly ignore the moghul influence, clearly show the curved tulwar with the 'common' tulwar blade, dating as early as the mid 16thC.
the moghul blade seemed to develop into the tulwar we know more commonly throughout the next few hundred years. and yet this piece seems to hail more from this earlier period and i wonder if it was a meant as a 'revival' sword. a blade made to show the history of the culture, rather than show the fashion of the times. just a guess. either way, its clearly obvious that the blade is of high quality. the hilt and inscription seem of a slightly later date. the pics attached here aid this supposition, as its clear the blade is of the same workshop, but the gold work is a lot thinner and not of the same quality. nor is the hilt. i do not mean modern, but not of the same time (possible late 18th/early 19th redecoration).
i have seen a third a few years ago in a friends shop, with the same blade. this piece was better overall than the one i show here, but still not upto jens' piece. the blade was of quality but the hilt was not as good.
without a doubt jens, made for a very important person and now in very good hands
