Andrew, thank you for your kind words about my collection. Although I started to collect many years ago, I have not added much to my collection lately. Instead I have added considerably to my library on the subject during the last years, as the knowledge is as important as the weapons themselves.
B.I., I would suggest, if I may, that you dine out with friends at least three times a week, and give us a full report, not later than two days after the dinner. This would, if nothing else, add a lot to our knowledge.
The thread you have started is very interesting and also very important. I do realise that some collect weapon out of curiosity and to hang them on a wall, while others collect them to study and to get as much knowledge out of them as possible. Personally I have read books covering six to eight different areas, and in a way it is as if, the more you read, the less you know – I do however hope that that will change
.
The different ways wootz looks when the item is finished, can be due to different things Different ores, different ways to make the ingots, different ways of heating and cooling the item, different metals forged with the ingot, and quite a few other things I guess – but I hope Ann will be kind enough to tell us more about this, as this is an important part of this discussion.
It must be remembered that when it is said that the Indian wootz blades were more greyish and had a more floating pattern than the Persian blades, this is a truce with modifications.
The Indian smiths were masters, and could, to my opinion, make whatever pattern or colour the customer wanted. I don’t intend to start a discussion on who were the biggest artists, the Indian or the Persian smiths, only to mention that the Indian smiths were no lesser artists than the Persian.
Another thing is, that during the Mogul rule many artists were brought to India to work for the court, and everyone learned from each other, so although a blade looks as if it is Persian, an Indian smith might have made it. I doubt however, that the more greyish floating pattern was made by the Persians smiths working in India – but I don’t know.
Have a look at the two different types of pattern and tell me, that the one to the right, without any doubt was made by a Persian smith.