Jamdhar katari - a theory

Bob A · 28th May 2019, 07:36 PM

Having made an effort to look into Kafiristani costumery, I admit my thought that the thinner blade of the Jamdhar katari is not influenced by scanty dress. Those folks live in an area demanding reasonable-to-serious clothing.

My example was deemed to be early 17th century by Artzi, and is in fact rather different from the later examples, with regard to the hilt geometry. Assuming the kafiristan location attributed to these weapons, I have to assume that their blades are standard and of long standing. I'm still unsure of their intended function, given the nature of the weapon. I assume it would be just the thing for close-in assassination; aside from that I'd be hard pressed to think what to do with it.

All that said, it remains a very attractive dagger.

Bob A · 28th May 2019, 07:52 PM

Pics of my katars per request:

I thought I'd append extra information. The Jamdhar katari weighs 215grams; the scalloped katar is 347g; the big nasty one is in excess of 610 gram (I misplaced my scale-extender for the balance. Probably <700g).

Jim McDougall · 28th May 2019, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob A

Pics of my katars per request:

I thought I'd append extra information. The Jamdhar katari weighs 215grams; the scalloped katar is 347g; the big nasty one is in excess of 610 gram (I misplaced my scale-extender for the balance. Probably <700g).

Bob, which of these is presumed to be a jamadhar katari? Please see my post #244 just a few before this. It presents the jamadhar katari dilemma created prior to 1880 by Egerton with the misnomer.

These daggers are both katars, and as far as I know, these have nothing to with the Kafirs we have been discussing. Both of these appear to have the bolstered points. Did Artzi give more specific details on perhaps the regions these are from?

Attached is the dagger referred to as jamadhar katari (1880) which is actually a Kafir 'katarah'.

A comparison of KATAR and JAMADHAR KATARI from the OP from April, 2012 here.
I just wanted to illustrate the difference between the two weapons.
I will avoid elaborating on the proper terms for these two daggers so as not to confuse things further.

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28th May 2019, 07:36 PM	#1
Bob A Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 441	Having made an effort to look into Kafiristani costumery, I admit my thought that the thinner blade of the Jamdhar katari is not influenced by scanty dress. Those folks live in an area demanding reasonable-to-serious clothing. My example was deemed to be early 17th century by Artzi, and is in fact rather different from the later examples, with regard to the hilt geometry. Assuming the kafiristan location attributed to these weapons, I have to assume that their blades are standard and of long standing. I'm still unsure of their intended function, given the nature of the weapon. I assume it would be just the thing for close-in assassination; aside from that I'd be hard pressed to think what to do with it. All that said, it remains a very attractive dagger.

28th May 2019, 07:52 PM	#2
Bob A Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 441	Pics of my katars per request: I thought I'd append extra information. The Jamdhar katari weighs 215grams; the scalloped katar is 347g; the big nasty one is in excess of 610 gram (I misplaced my scale-extender for the balance. Probably <700g). Attached Images Last edited by Bob A; 28th May 2019 at 08:29 PM.