Yataghan for discussion.

serdar · 31st August 2025, 06:49 PM

Congrats on aquiring that nice pala.
My main focus in collecting are yataghan swords, especialy from balkan region, with emphasis on Dalmatian, Boka kotorska, Montenegro and Bosnia und Herzegovina region.

What you got there is a Pala big knife like it is called in this area, or Pala handžar.
Mainly and usualy pala is made from silver, and not like yours from black horn?(boka kotorska was a center of very good goldsmiths who made excuisit works in silver) and by that yours is more interesting, like for the yatagan origin, origin of first pala is unknown, but only examples i encountered and inherited from my ancestors are from on my language Primorje or Boka kotorska, and some in Albanian coast made, so it is a big chance pala originated there like their response on yatagans.

Some palas do have ottoman stamps some not, that is normal blade trade in boka at that time.

In Dubrovnik region and Dalmatia they made straight yatagans but with ears, but they never made pala type.

This kind, a Pala kind were made only in Boka kotorska and very rarely in Albania.

Your blade looks like blades from 15/16 century italian blades with triple marca de mosca, and it seems to me it had a fulers long ago that are filed, or it is patina that tricks me into thinking that.

All in all very nice and valuable piece you got ther.
Yatagans with old reused blades are very rare, and palas are even rarer.

About origin i would say maybe Bosnian? Or Albanian, i never encountered this type from turkey or other regions that were under ottomans, and handle pined construction and parazvana or blade colar is similar to one bosnian yataghan i had before, allso there were lot of italian blades in this region.

About age, palas were usualy made in the secon half of 18 century.

Il post few pictures, first of dalmatian yatagan, then of two palas from boka kotorska region, and two pictures from old books one from Croatia second from Bosnia.

31st August 2025, 06:49 PM	#3
serdar Member Join Date: Feb 2023 Posts: 175	Congrats on aquiring that nice pala. My main focus in collecting are yataghan swords, especialy from balkan region, with emphasis on Dalmatian, Boka kotorska, Montenegro and Bosnia und Herzegovina region. What you got there is a Pala big knife like it is called in this area, or Pala handžar. Mainly and usualy pala is made from silver, and not like yours from black horn?(boka kotorska was a center of very good goldsmiths who made excuisit works in silver) and by that yours is more interesting, like for the yatagan origin, origin of first pala is unknown, but only examples i encountered and inherited from my ancestors are from on my language Primorje or Boka kotorska, and some in Albanian coast made, so it is a big chance pala originated there like their response on yatagans. Some palas do have ottoman stamps some not, that is normal blade trade in boka at that time. In Dubrovnik region and Dalmatia they made straight yatagans but with ears, but they never made pala type. This kind, a Pala kind were made only in Boka kotorska and very rarely in Albania. Your blade looks like blades from 15/16 century italian blades with triple marca de mosca, and it seems to me it had a fulers long ago that are filed, or it is patina that tricks me into thinking that. All in all very nice and valuable piece you got ther. Yatagans with old reused blades are very rare, and palas are even rarer. About origin i would say maybe Bosnian? Or Albanian, i never encountered this type from turkey or other regions that were under ottomans, and handle pined construction and parazvana or blade colar is similar to one bosnian yataghan i had before, allso there were lot of italian blades in this region. About age, palas were usualy made in the secon half of 18 century. Il post few pictures, first of dalmatian yatagan, then of two palas from boka kotorska region, and two pictures from old books one from Croatia second from Bosnia. Attached Images