Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

gp · 26th May 2022, 10:50 AM

bak 2 the bichaqs...

just bought this one. Lenght of a typical Sarajevo bichaq, the grip is a little more like a Yataghan but is not that rare to be seen either.

Strange is the fact that most Bosnian K.u.K made bichaqs (22-37 cm ones) have a long straight blade.
Only the "cutlery" type ( < 20 cm) ones have the Yataghan typical "curly" or "curved" or snakish shape blade.
And ofcourse the Yataghan themselves...
Also the decoration differs from the K.u.K. Habsburg period 1878-1918 ones and looks more like the Ottoman times art work from pre 1878
as can be seen in the bichaqs with Arab lettering.
So a kind of match / crossover? between two periods one might say perhaps ?

First time I encountered a Balkan and Bosnian bichaq with such a blade .

The scabbard is a "marriage" as it doesn't belong to this shape of blade.
No problem as I can use it for a “straight" blade bichaq without a scabbard.

But strange it is . Will post , if interest is there, more pics upon its arrival.

Your thoughts and comments please...?

thnx a lot!

Gunar

26th May 2022, 10:50 AM	#123
gp Member Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 658	bak 2 the bichaqs... just bought this one. Lenght of a typical Sarajevo bichaq, the grip is a little more like a Yataghan but is not that rare to be seen either. Strange is the fact that most Bosnian K.u.K made bichaqs (22-37 cm ones) have a long straight blade. Only the "cutlery" type ( < 20 cm) ones have the Yataghan typical "curly" or "curved" or snakish shape blade. And ofcourse the Yataghan themselves... Also the decoration differs from the K.u.K. Habsburg period 1878-1918 ones and looks more like the Ottoman times art work from pre 1878 as can be seen in the bichaqs with Arab lettering. So a kind of match / crossover? between two periods one might say perhaps ? First time I encountered a Balkan and Bosnian bichaq with such a blade . The scabbard is a "marriage" as it doesn't belong to this shape of blade. No problem as I can use it for a “straight" blade bichaq without a scabbard. But strange it is . Will post , if interest is there, more pics upon its arrival. Your thoughts and comments please...? thnx a lot! Gunar Attached Images Last edited by gp; 26th May 2022 at 09:01 PM.