Thread: Khyber knife
View Single Post
Old 22nd March 2005, 02:23 PM   #26
ariel
Member
 
ariel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Posts: 5,503
Default

The more I look at the silverwork, the more I think of Bukhara, Samarkand etc.These belong to Uzbekistan, a Turkic state. Uzbeks migrated to the area relatively recently (1500 years ago? Is it recent?). By the way, they chose to call themselves Uzbek after one of the most successful Khans of the Golden Horde, Ozbek, who was Chingiz Khan's grandson or close to that.
The adjoining Tajikistan employs a language that is almost purely Persian and there are many Tajiks living in the current borders of Afghanistan.
This "khyber" might have been made in Northern Afghanistan, influenced by the "Central Asian" motives. Would be fascinating to find Russian markings on the blade.
ariel is offline   Reply With Quote