My latest piece, a Yataghan blade.

ariel · 21st May 2018, 10:08 PM

Jens,
I do not think it is going to help much: blades were forged en masse and sold all over the Ottoman Empire and adjacent countries. Elgood mentions it re. Northern Balkans and Daskalov gives a long list of Bulgarian weapon-manufacturing centers.
One can mount any handle on it and it will be "correct". One can even add kilij handle and crossguard and call it a naval one ( also per Elgood):-)
One thing is for sure: it is neither Zeibek, nor Bulgarian Karakulak. Those had integral bolsters.

21st May 2018, 10:08 PM	#1
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Jens, I do not think it is going to help much: blades were forged en masse and sold all over the Ottoman Empire and adjacent countries. Elgood mentions it re. Northern Balkans and Daskalov gives a long list of Bulgarian weapon-manufacturing centers. One can mount any handle on it and it will be "correct". One can even add kilij handle and crossguard and call it a naval one ( also per Elgood):-) One thing is for sure: it is neither Zeibek, nor Bulgarian Karakulak. Those had integral bolsters.