Persian jambiya or khanjar - wootz
 

Recently, I've got thisone. Nice, isn't it? What do you think?

Yes, very nice. I like the walrus hilt - has a nice patina on it. I did not like the inlay at first. The geometrical pattern like this is known on Qajar jambiyas (This is not a writing, but a decoration). But this one is ok, and also has an inlayed date: 120=1120, which is 1708. As this is a typical Qajar jambiya, i.e. late 18th/19th Century, the date does not match it, so I doubt this is an actual year, and could be a later attempt to impress with an earlier date.
Nice jambiya! Congrats!

Cannot add much except also write: very nice, congratulations!

Thank you!

What characters indicates the date??

Fourth picture from the top, lower pat of the blade, outside of the rest of the inlay.

I read the year to be 1250 HA meaning 1834 AD - but I am not a specialist on Arabian numbers - am I wrong?

Jens, I thought of it, and it does make sense. BUT there are 2 reasons I think the last digit - 0 - is not part of the date: it is positioned above the hotizontal allignment of the rest of the date line; and it matches another, similar character on the other side of the pattern, so I think it is a decoration and not a digit. Let's see what others think?

Alex, I see what you mean, and agree, but why do you think the missing number is not shown? Could the three digit number represent anything else than a year?

Jens, sometimes the first numeral is omitted. As Arabic dates read left to right, the 1120 would be represented as 120. I do not think the three digits could stand for anything else other than a year. Sometimes the Serial Number is inscribed, but only on later objects, such as plates, boxes, etc, but not good quality blades.

i vote for 1250. Circle means a "5". A dot means "zero". The 3rd symbol looks more like a circle to me. In Arabic words are written from right to left, but numbers are from written left to right. As far as I know if the last digit is " zero", it can be ignored and often not written sometimes. (At least on some antique items. I have no information about contemporary grammer rules of Arabic)

Alex and Erlikhan,
Thank you very much for your explanations. I find it very interesting to see how the dates are read and understood on weapons from different areas.
Jens

Jens, you're most welcome. We all should learn from one another...
speaking of which: I still think the date is 1120. Let's see what others think...