help with identity & origin

TVV · 19th February 2006, 09:32 PM

Nice and interesting yataghan, I was watching this one on eBay too. I do not think it is from Bulgaria, as the yatagans usually found in Bulgaria have curved blades. I thought straight blades are characteristic of Greek yataghans, aren't they?
Now how about the eyelashes marks? Where would they point to? To me it appears that this piece exhibits a mixture of styles from Greece and the Caucasus, which is not so surprising considering the chaos and movement of peoples within the Ottoman empire. Many Circassians were given lands in the Balkans by the Sultan in an attempt to provide a counterbalance to the Christians in an era, when nationalism and independence movements were on a rise.
Whatever it turns out to be, it is deffinitely a great and intriguing piece, congratulations.

erlikhan · 20th February 2006, 09:05 PM

My opinion will be quiet different. I have been seeing straight or curved yataghans having the same characteristics of hilt,scabbard and even the blade in the last few weeks(all on ebay), many more than all I saw in last years. The cast brass or copper? hilt and scabbard works look not beautiful but easy to make,cheap and crude to me, and I think it should have looked even more crude to wealthy people of the period,who used to order these swords for themselves. Much better samples of such brass or copper work can be and are done for not much money in all middle east, or Gaziantep town in Turkey. Much easier and cheaper than walrus,silver, or even horn ones. Plus the etching style on the blade is poor and unesthetical, and the saw stamps look unrelated and artifical. Such blades,even better ones are still produced not only in some centers in middle east ,but perhaps somewhere else too. I am sorry if I hurt anyone's feelings, these are just my own opinions and what I feel and they can be totally wrong.

regards

not2sharp · 20th February 2006, 09:44 PM

Quote:

I have been seeing straight or curved yataghans having the same characteristics of hilt,scabbard and even the blade in the last few weeks, many more than all I saw in last years.

How can we even begin to gage the age of this example?

n2s

erlikhan · 20th February 2006, 09:56 PM

It must be quiet new. Every single part of it,and its decorations can be made with better quality,more logical by historical culture facts and for cheap prices today.So can it be antique?

mavi1970 · 21st February 2006, 04:39 AM

me again... nobody's feelings have been hurt, especially not mine, but in this case i think you might be incorrect. the age of this example is not a cheap reproduction, i have seen new copies, which i also have come across, and those are quite crude in manufacture. but this sword with its detail, does not exude any newness to it, even the brass work does not have the marks of electric devices. even the scabbard with amount of mold and decay on the wood inside can not be something copied recently. its not a matter of being new, just how old I guess which is my question. Or could it be an old sword where the horn was replaced to make the sword look more exotic in years past, I dont know. I guess thats something that can never be known.

not2sharp · 21st February 2006, 05:30 AM

Quote:

I guess thats something that can never be known.

Can you post a more detailed set of photos? Including some closeup photos/scans of the metalwork on the blade, hilt, and mounts.

n2s

ham · 21st February 2006, 05:42 AM

Gentlemen,

As noted by various members above, yatagans were indigenous to a number of areas in the Ottoman Empire, and were still carried in isolated ones until as late as WWII; it has been observed by some ethnographers even later, in fact.
A straight or curved blade seems a matter of personal taste, one finds them in greater or lesser numbers throughout the Empire; it is not the best indicator of origin. The "jaw" marks struck in pairs on the blade at least suggest E. Europe. The large,stepped ears however, point to the Balkans. The wheel motifs chiselled on the blade are found from Hungary down through European Turkey. The embossed and engraved brasswork on hilt and scabbard are typical of Albanian, or Arnavut, work-- it is comparable with that found on the so-called rattail pistols of that region.
For these reasons, it probably is Albanian or from closeby. And an excellent example of the type incidentally, probably made between 1850-1890.

Sincerely,

Ham

TVV · 21st February 2006, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by not2sharp

How can we even begin to gage the age of this example?

n2s

Good point. I find it hard to judge the quality of the workmanship from the pictures posted: they are a bit too dark to allow details to be seen. Yataghans that I have handled always exhibit a 5 mm hardened edge? Does this one have it?

Flavio · 21st February 2006, 05:07 PM

Hello, this is ended. What do you think about this?

http://cgi.ebay.it/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...e=STRK:MEWA:IT

TVV · 21st February 2006, 08:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flavio

Hello, this is ended. What do you think about this?

http://cgi.ebay.it/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...e=STRK:MEWA:IT

Considering the patina on the brass band on the hilt, the scabbard appears to be a recent replacement. Another suspect thing is the six pointed star. I think there was a discussion on this symbol:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ght=star+david

I am sure the rest will add more comments, but to me this appears as an old yataghan with a recently (and poorly) embellished blade and a new scabbard, or maybe even only the hilt was genuinely old.

Valjhun · 21st February 2006, 09:14 PM

I have exactly the same opinion as thatone ( btw almost the same), or a lot of other similar pieces: Bosnia-Montenegro 19th century piece. I do not like the scabbard too, thou. That star maybe indicates that the owner was a jew, if that's the case it is more Bosnia than Montenegro.

20th February 2006, 09:05 PM	#2
erlikhan Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Istanbul Posts: 452	My opinion will be quiet different. I have been seeing straight or curved yataghans having the same characteristics of hilt,scabbard and even the blade in the last few weeks(all on ebay), many more than all I saw in last years. The cast brass or copper? hilt and scabbard works look not beautiful but easy to make,cheap and crude to me, and I think it should have looked even more crude to wealthy people of the period,who used to order these swords for themselves. Much better samples of such brass or copper work can be and are done for not much money in all middle east, or Gaziantep town in Turkey. Much easier and cheaper than walrus,silver, or even horn ones. Plus the etching style on the blade is poor and unesthetical, and the saw stamps look unrelated and artifical. Such blades,even better ones are still produced not only in some centers in middle east ,but perhaps somewhere else too. I am sorry if I hurt anyone's feelings, these are just my own opinions and what I feel and they can be totally wrong. regards Last edited by erlikhan; 20th February 2006 at 09:48 PM.

21st February 2006, 05:42 AM	#7
ham Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 190	Gentlemen, As noted by various members above, yatagans were indigenous to a number of areas in the Ottoman Empire, and were still carried in isolated ones until as late as WWII; it has been observed by some ethnographers even later, in fact. A straight or curved blade seems a matter of personal taste, one finds them in greater or lesser numbers throughout the Empire; it is not the best indicator of origin. The "jaw" marks struck in pairs on the blade at least suggest E. Europe. The large,stepped ears however, point to the Balkans. The wheel motifs chiselled on the blade are found from Hungary down through European Turkey. The embossed and engraved brasswork on hilt and scabbard are typical of Albanian, or Arnavut, work-- it is comparable with that found on the so-called rattail pistols of that region. For these reasons, it probably is Albanian or from closeby. And an excellent example of the type incidentally, probably made between 1850-1890. Sincerely, Ham Last edited by ham; 21st February 2006 at 06:22 AM.

21st February 2006, 09:14 PM	#11
Valjhun Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 692	I have exactly the same opinion as thatone ( btw almost the same), or a lot of other similar pieces: Bosnia-Montenegro 19th century piece. I do not like the scabbard too, thou. That star maybe indicates that the owner was a jew, if that's the case it is more Bosnia than Montenegro. Attached Images Last edited by Valjhun; 21st February 2006 at 10:24 PM.

19th February 2006, 09:32 PM	#1
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,660	Nice and interesting yataghan, I was watching this one on eBay too. I do not think it is from Bulgaria, as the yatagans usually found in Bulgaria have curved blades. I thought straight blades are characteristic of Greek yataghans, aren't they? Now how about the eyelashes marks? Where would they point to? To me it appears that this piece exhibits a mixture of styles from Greece and the Caucasus, which is not so surprising considering the chaos and movement of peoples within the Ottoman empire. Many Circassians were given lands in the Balkans by the Sultan in an attempt to provide a counterbalance to the Christians in an era, when nationalism and independence movements were on a rise. Whatever it turns out to be, it is deffinitely a great and intriguing piece, congratulations.

20th February 2006, 09:56 PM	#4
erlikhan Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Istanbul Posts: 452	It must be quiet new. Every single part of it,and its decorations can be made with better quality,more logical by historical culture facts and for cheap prices today.So can it be antique?

21st February 2006, 04:39 AM	#5
mavi1970 Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: canada Posts: 90	me again... nobody's feelings have been hurt, especially not mine, but in this case i think you might be incorrect. the age of this example is not a cheap reproduction, i have seen new copies, which i also have come across, and those are quite crude in manufacture. but this sword with its detail, does not exude any newness to it, even the brass work does not have the marks of electric devices. even the scabbard with amount of mold and decay on the wood inside can not be something copied recently. its not a matter of being new, just how old I guess which is my question. Or could it be an old sword where the horn was replaced to make the sword look more exotic in years past, I dont know. I guess thats something that can never be known.

21st February 2006, 05:07 PM	#9
Flavio Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Italia Posts: 1,243	Hello, this is ended. What do you think about this? http://cgi.ebay.it/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...e=STRK:MEWA:IT