A Strangely Mounted Twistcore Yataghan

CharlesS · 17th September 2018, 04:34 PM

As many of you know, I love blades that show characteristics of cross-cultural construction and just when I think I have seen it all, inevitably I will find another that "takes the cake".

This yataghan is such an example.

The yat's blade is almost certainly Ottoman Turkish with a "Turkish ribbon" twistcore that is very clear and defined, and starts at a rather far point from the forte. It has a common T-type spine.

It is not the blade that is so unusual, but the way it is mounted. The scabbard looks to be a combination of Ottoman(steel wire stitching), Persian(steel baldric mounts), and western(chape) influence. Note, I and think rather oddly for this particular sword, the baldric would have suspended the sword edge up!

Then there is the hilt, which combines a Persian/European style guard with a clearly European style grip and pommel made from one piece of carved horn.

The parts here are so inconsistent one would be easily tempted to assume it was some recently cobbled together piece from someone who knew little or nothing about historically accurate swords, but look at all of it carefully and you can see it was all "born together" at some point, all parts clearly showing that that were made for each other and considerable and matching age. I'll call it a historical composite if you like!

I have no idea why these parts would have come together in this rather strange way and I welcome comments about this old oddity!

17th September 2018, 04:34 PM	#1
CharlesS Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Greenville, NC Posts: 1,855	A Strangely Mounted Twistcore Yataghan As many of you know, I love blades that show characteristics of cross-cultural construction and just when I think I have seen it all, inevitably I will find another that "takes the cake". This yataghan is such an example. The yat's blade is almost certainly Ottoman Turkish with a "Turkish ribbon" twistcore that is very clear and defined, and starts at a rather far point from the forte. It has a common T-type spine. It is not the blade that is so unusual, but the way it is mounted. The scabbard looks to be a combination of Ottoman(steel wire stitching), Persian(steel baldric mounts), and western(chape) influence. Note, I and think rather oddly for this particular sword, the baldric would have suspended the sword edge up! Then there is the hilt, which combines a Persian/European style guard with a clearly European style grip and pommel made from one piece of carved horn. The parts here are so inconsistent one would be easily tempted to assume it was some recently cobbled together piece from someone who knew little or nothing about historically accurate swords, but look at all of it carefully and you can see it was all "born together" at some point, all parts clearly showing that that were made for each other and considerable and matching age. I'll call it a historical composite if you like! I have no idea why these parts would have come together in this rather strange way and I welcome comments about this old oddity! Attached Images