QAJAR "REVIVAL" SWORD for Comment

[mahratt]

Originally Posted by mariusgmioc

I am familiar with the existance in Persia and India of wootz producing swordsmiths well into 19th century. However, I am not familiar with any of 19th century Persian swordsmiths signing the blades they produced.

Yes. The swordmasters who signed wootz blades in the 19th century, I can’t remember ... Perhaps because I also do not have Rivkin’s book

[mariusgmioc]

Citing from "Arms and Armor from Iran," page 201, column 1, e

"The double-edged, straight swords with downward quillons were by no means a revival movement specific to the Qajar period. There are a number of Iranian straight swords from earlier periods kept in Russian museums as discussed earlier. Hence, the tradition of making double-edged, straight swords in Iran goes back to the Timurid and Safavid eras, meaning there was a coexistence of straight and curved swords during the Safavid era [...]"

Further down the lines Mr. Moshtagh discusses briefly the Qajar straight swords stating that even some with highly decorated blades were fully functional.

So it seems I was wrong twice

1. saying these swords are not mentioned in the book, and
2. in my previous assumption, as I underestimated the qualities of the decorated Qajar "revival" swords.

[ariel]

What was meant there by “ highly decorated?
There are many ways besides wall-to-wall etching to decorate a blade.


How different in heft and sturdiness were these swords?
The Qajar era Revival swords usually had thin flat blades without even a T, resembling sheet metal ( no fullers, no midrib). Many ( like this one) imitated Ottoman Palas without being graciously contoured.

[mariusgmioc]

Originally Posted by ariel

What was meant there by “ highly decorated?
There are many ways besides wall-to-wall etching to decorate a blade.


How different in heft and sturdiness were these swords?
The Qajar era Revival swords usually had thin flat blades without even a T, resembling sheet metal ( no fullers, no midrib). Many ( like this one) imitated Ottoman Palas without being graciously contoured.

"Highly-decorated" was my expression. To avoid any further ambiguity, I am posting herewith a photo of the last of the two pages discussing these swords. Two pages out of about 750...

I have handled several of these swords but didn't keep any as I judged them to be purely touristy crap (exactly as described by Ariel, with flat blades like cut from sheet steel, with no - or very poorly shaped - cutting edge and fairly poorly executed etching).

So, in my uneducated oppinion (based on personal observation), many, if not most of the "Qajar revival" swords are purely decorative and probably don't even belong to the Qajar period but are much later (20th century).

I also believe the text in the book refers strictly to the genuine Qajar period straight swords and not to the vast majoity of touristy crap that invaded the markets in the 20th century.

[Mercenary]

The Indo-Persian culture this is not a mixture of Indian and Persian culture. This is the muslim culture of one large region from Iran to South Asia including of course Central Asia.
How much there were Shiites centres and how many "Persian" subjects of weapon were prodused in India not only for European travelers?