PERSIAN KHANJAR

BANDOOK · 22nd May 2015, 12:23 PM

Persian khanjar
480 mm
Similar to the Russian /Georgian khindjal,it's fairly plain although the blade is embossed on one side.the scabbard is covered in Velvet type material but is well worn,as are the decorative fittings
Previous owner purchased it from an antique dealer in Tehran, Iran around 25 years ago.

BANDOOK · 24th May 2015, 10:53 AM

112 VIEWS BUT NO COMMENTS??SOMEONE MAY KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS KHANJAR,CHEERS

Kubur · 24th May 2015, 11:21 AM

Hi Rajesh,
I looked at the book "Arms and armor from Iran" and I haven't found any similar.
However I think yours is from the very late Qajar period, early 20thies.
Can you zoom on the scabbard, inscription and hilt? Do you have Qajar coins on the rivets?
Best wishes,
Kubur

BANDOOK · 24th May 2015, 11:36 AM

HI KUBUR WAITING FOR IT TO ARRIVE,WILL POST SOON,KIND REGARDS,THANKS

Battara · 25th May 2015, 12:03 AM

I agree with Kubur. I worked on one similar to this recently (a qama actually) and it had Persian coins on it from the late Qajar period. Thus I would say this is a Qajar period piece.

BANDOOK · 27th May 2015, 12:10 PM

HI KUBUR AND BATTARA AM POSTING PICTURES OF THE SILVER COINS ON THE HANDLE,BUT BADLY HAMMERED SO CANT SEE MUCH.

Oliver Pinchot · 29th May 2015, 06:45 PM

This is a relatively late example, certainly made in the Pahlavi era, i.e. post 1925. The salient characteristics are the inelegant, abbreviated form of the blade, the poorly-cut grooves, and the inlay, accomplished by chiseling a pattern into the steel and then heating and filling it with braze and grinding it flat. Likewise, the grips are competent but lack the refinement of earlier work.
The Qajar coins used as washers can assist in establishing a date, but dating a weapon based upon the coins applied to it is problematic. First, the coins must form an integral part of the piece, as they do here-- they are not nailed or soldered on as embellishments, which is often done much later-- rather, they comprise part of the hilt construction. Second, even when they are integral, the dates coins bear can only be taken as terminus ante quem i.e., the weapon cannot date earlier than the coins, but can date anytime thereafter.

BANDOOK · 30th May 2015, 10:48 AM

THANKS YOU OLIVER,YOUR INFORMATION AND COMMENTS ARE VALUABLE

22nd May 2015, 12:23 PM	#1
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	PERSIAN KHANJAR Persian khanjar 480 mm Similar to the Russian /Georgian khindjal,it's fairly plain although the blade is embossed on one side.the scabbard is covered in Velvet type material but is well worn,as are the decorative fittings Previous owner purchased it from an antique dealer in Tehran, Iran around 25 years ago. Attached Images

27th May 2015, 12:10 PM	#6
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	HI KUBUR AND BATTARA AM POSTING PICTURES OF THE SILVER COINS ON THE HANDLE,BUT BADLY HAMMERED SO CANT SEE MUCH. Attached Images

24th May 2015, 10:53 AM	#2
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	112 VIEWS BUT NO COMMENTS??SOMEONE MAY KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS KHANJAR,CHEERS

24th May 2015, 11:21 AM	#3
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	Hi Rajesh, I looked at the book "Arms and armor from Iran" and I haven't found any similar. However I think yours is from the very late Qajar period, early 20thies. Can you zoom on the scabbard, inscription and hilt? Do you have Qajar coins on the rivets? Best wishes, Kubur

24th May 2015, 11:36 AM	#4
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	HI KUBUR WAITING FOR IT TO ARRIVE,WILL POST SOON,KIND REGARDS,THANKS

25th May 2015, 12:03 AM	#5
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,139	I agree with Kubur. I worked on one similar to this recently (a qama actually) and it had Persian coins on it from the late Qajar period. Thus I would say this is a Qajar period piece.

29th May 2015, 06:45 PM	#7
Oliver Pinchot Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 456	This is a relatively late example, certainly made in the Pahlavi era, i.e. post 1925. The salient characteristics are the inelegant, abbreviated form of the blade, the poorly-cut grooves, and the inlay, accomplished by chiseling a pattern into the steel and then heating and filling it with braze and grinding it flat. Likewise, the grips are competent but lack the refinement of earlier work. The Qajar coins used as washers can assist in establishing a date, but dating a weapon based upon the coins applied to it is problematic. First, the coins must form an integral part of the piece, as they do here-- they are not nailed or soldered on as embellishments, which is often done much later-- rather, they comprise part of the hilt construction. Second, even when they are integral, the dates coins bear can only be taken as terminus ante quem i.e., the weapon cannot date earlier than the coins, but can date anytime thereafter.

30th May 2015, 10:48 AM	#8
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	THANKS YOU OLIVER,YOUR INFORMATION AND COMMENTS ARE VALUABLE