[Pitt1999]

Originally Posted by Nihl

((I lost my original draft of this reply, so in my attempt to recreate it my apologies if some bits sound odd here or there.))

Ooo I've been waiting to share this item from my collection (see attached images)!

While I otherwise agree with Jim's stance that these don't really count as a kind of shashka, I happen to have a short sword that's somewhat similar to his!

It too has a short, stubby, almost bayonet-like guard, with a horn grip that has shashka-esque ears on it. After that the similarities end, but perhaps the following information will be of interest to some.

Whilst in general this sword has good fuller work and engraving, what's most noteworthy about it is that it's not alone! So far, I've found three examples total (including mine) that all have the same style of handle and blade decoration. What's noteworthy about this is, as it pertains to the thread, this would seem to indicate that this style of sword was made for a time by a dedicated group of artisans, and not just a single smith that happened to throw a (short) blade together with a random shaksha-esque handle.

While one of the other examples is near identical to mine, and coincidentally was sold at the same auction house that I got mine from, the third example is much more weathered. It, distinctly, is lacking the laz-style leatherwork of its cousins, and also seems to have a makers mark! The markings inside would appear to (maybe??) be some kind of islamic script, but it's rather hard to tell because of how rusted it is.

Though overall I'm aware that swords of this style are probably grouped more with other Laz/surmene/trabizond products, it seemed like this thread was a good place to share them, as they indeed all have short blades and (probably?) shashka inspired handles.

Attached are a few images of each example

I have seen a sword exactly like one of these for sale before! I forgot if it was on eBay or not, a combination of not recognizing what it was and a lack of funds contributed to me not jumping on it while it was there. The weapons of this region are so beautiful, they look like weapons you would see in fantasy artwork. I have a couple of knives from the Surmene area, I wish I had more. I wish I had one of these short swords to ogle at. There was a laz bichaq on eBay recently that I was bidding on, I thought I had it in the bag so I took my eyes off the auction only to wake up the next morning to see that I actually lost. Some things aren't meant to be I guess.