Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

TVV · 5th July 2008, 06:27 PM

Chevalier, as RhysMichael has pointed out, the authors are Nikola Daskalov nd Vyara Kovacheva and the book has not been reprinted since it was printed in the 80s, so finding it may prove to be difficult. Sometimes Bulgarian sellers on eBay may have a copy, but even this occurs rarely.
The book may claim to deal with weapons found in the territory of nowadays Bulgaria from Thracian times to the end of the 19th century, but there are only about two pages dedicated to ancient and medieval weapons. The authors have concentrated their research primarily on the weapons found in Bulgaria from the period, during which Bulgaria was part of the Ottoman Empire. The emphasis is on firearms, and the book is actually a great reference on the shishane and boylia rifles, as well as the pistols and accessories that were used in the Balkans prior to the adoption of various factory mass-produced firearms. There are also nice examples of edged weapons and some info about them, but overall the book is not as exhaustive on the swords and daggers as it is on the firearms, perhaps because in Ottoman times in what is nowadays Bulgaria there were plenty of centers, such as Sliven, which were renown for the craftsmanship of their gunsmiths, while bladesmithing on the other was not such a popular and successfull craft in those lands.
I have a copy of the book, and if you are only looking for specific information, perhaps I could be able to help you.

5th July 2008, 06:27 PM	#4
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,660	Chevalier, as RhysMichael has pointed out, the authors are Nikola Daskalov nd Vyara Kovacheva and the book has not been reprinted since it was printed in the 80s, so finding it may prove to be difficult. Sometimes Bulgarian sellers on eBay may have a copy, but even this occurs rarely. The book may claim to deal with weapons found in the territory of nowadays Bulgaria from Thracian times to the end of the 19th century, but there are only about two pages dedicated to ancient and medieval weapons. The authors have concentrated their research primarily on the weapons found in Bulgaria from the period, during which Bulgaria was part of the Ottoman Empire. The emphasis is on firearms, and the book is actually a great reference on the shishane and boylia rifles, as well as the pistols and accessories that were used in the Balkans prior to the adoption of various factory mass-produced firearms. There are also nice examples of edged weapons and some info about them, but overall the book is not as exhaustive on the swords and daggers as it is on the firearms, perhaps because in Ottoman times in what is nowadays Bulgaria there were plenty of centers, such as Sliven, which were renown for the craftsmanship of their gunsmiths, while bladesmithing on the other was not such a popular and successfull craft in those lands. I have a copy of the book, and if you are only looking for specific information, perhaps I could be able to help you.