Neat little knife

motan · 25th October 2018, 09:06 AM

Hi,
This definitely looks like a Surmene knife from the Trabzon area, and it could very well be one. But I understand the confusion.
There are some elements that look Syrian or Lebanese.
The quality and finish of Surmene knifes is usually high and the decoration is sparse, besides the intricate pattern of fullers. The blade on this one is of a bit lower quality, the fullers are shallow and the "red eye" is a Syrian, not Trabzon element. The scabbard also looks Syrian, and Trabzon knives have a leather scabbard, or leather with metal embossing.
So, where is it from? I can only guess. Syrian workshops were not very style-fast. The catered to everyone's taste. They made a variety of Syrian kindjals for Caucasian Ottoman clients, swords of different sorts for the Bedouin, like shamshirs and other sabers with kilij hilt, and many styles of daggers, both for real use as for tourists. I guess this could be a surmene knife made in Syria, maybe for an Ottoman subject from Northern Turkey.

25th October 2018, 09:06 AM	#6
motan Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Jerusalem Posts: 274	Hi, This definitely looks like a Surmene knife from the Trabzon area, and it could very well be one. But I understand the confusion. There are some elements that look Syrian or Lebanese. The quality and finish of Surmene knifes is usually high and the decoration is sparse, besides the intricate pattern of fullers. The blade on this one is of a bit lower quality, the fullers are shallow and the "red eye" is a Syrian, not Trabzon element. The scabbard also looks Syrian, and Trabzon knives have a leather scabbard, or leather with metal embossing. So, where is it from? I can only guess. Syrian workshops were not very style-fast. The catered to everyone's taste. They made a variety of Syrian kindjals for Caucasian Ottoman clients, swords of different sorts for the Bedouin, like shamshirs and other sabers with kilij hilt, and many styles of daggers, both for real use as for tourists. I guess this could be a surmene knife made in Syria, maybe for an Ottoman subject from Northern Turkey.