Old Omani Saif
I am really excited to share this old Omani saif, as one of these has been on my wish list forever. Here are the measurements:
Entire length: 36 inches (91.44 cm)
Blade length: 25 inches (63.50 cm)
Blade width at base: 2 inches (5.08 cm)
Weight: 1 lb 11.5 oz (780 grams)
The hilt is the typical old style hilt, with three rivets. The grip is hexagonal, and so is the pommel, with silver decoration along the edges. Whatever other covering and decoration may have been there is long gone.
The blade has a single central fuller, with a distal taper and surprisingly thin. It is in great polish, and perhaps most importantly, entirely made of wootz. I did not do a great job of bringing the pattern out and wootz is always hard to photograph for me, but I believe it is clearly visible in the pictures.
This is not the only old Omani saif with a wootz blade, as there is at least one such sword in the sold section of Oriental Arms. Indian blades were of course popular since the early years of Muslim conquest all through the entire Middle Ages, as mentioned by Nicolle in "Early Islamic Arms". I suspect that Indian wootz blades remained valued in Oman and the Omani holdings on the East African Coast up until Solingen's prolific production offered a cheaper alternative without compromising the quality, ultimately leading to the adoption of the longer style blade and hilt.
What are your thoughts on this sword's age and origin?
Teodor
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