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Old 7th February 2021, 06:14 PM   #13
kronckew
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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Balkan karakulak yats are frequently fairly crude. They and many longer Bulgarian/Greek shepherds knives are made by local blacksmiths for less well off locals. most have integral bolsters, which the Turkish ones tend not to, having formed sheet metal, usually decorated or embeded with colored stones extending partway up the blade..Like yours (which has no stones).

Longer Balkan shepherds knives can look very yat-like.

In other words, without specific indicators, yours has mixed signals, Balkans Or Turkey sounds reasonable (or both).

p.s. - something simple, like a photo of the stitching on the scabbard may help too. Turks tended to use a sort of ladder with short horizontals wound with wire (example from a sabre below)

My Bulgarian (Balkan) Karaculak/shepherd's knife:
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Last edited by kronckew; 7th February 2021 at 07:18 PM.
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