Thank you all for the responses. There is a mechanical damascus pattern indeed. I would have never figured out the marking myself. Well, now there are at least two examples stamped with a tughra on the blade. I suppose it would be hard to explain why certain swords carried a tughra on the blade. Could they have belonged to an arsenal, or was it an inspection mark put on blades? Maybe someone has better guesses than mine.
One more question - given the shape of the blade and its pattern, do you think it was a locally (which for the Ottoman Empire encompasses quite a large area) forged one, or imported from somewhere else, such as India?
Again, thank you for your replies.
Teodor
|