Dagger from Crete (?) - for comment +translation plea

ariel · 25th February 2016, 11:12 AM

Martin,
Cretan daggers that I know always have a specific engraved ornament ( large, convoluted, floral) and are signed in Greek. This one has neither. It seems to me that there is a date, 1301(????), that would not be consistent with the already independent Greece. Also, it is yataghan-ish.
I would guess it is a Turkish or Balkan Muslim yataghan bichaq.
Having cleaned it up, you might consider stopping with further restoration efforts. IMHO.

25th February 2016, 11:12 AM	#7
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Martin, Cretan daggers that I know always have a specific engraved ornament ( large, convoluted, floral) and are signed in Greek. This one has neither. It seems to me that there is a date, 1301(????), that would not be consistent with the already independent Greece. Also, it is yataghan-ish. I would guess it is a Turkish or Balkan Muslim yataghan bichaq. Having cleaned it up, you might consider stopping with further restoration efforts. IMHO.