An Overview on The Modern Arabian Saif

[A.alnakkas]

Originally Posted by Iain

I understand the tradition aspect, what pains me a bit is the obvious drop in quality, with good, if a bit tattered older elements being changed out for flashy, but lower quality new pieces. Still, it's good the culture of swords survives.

Also good to hear a few legitimate smiths survive. Are there any "castes" or societal factors around who does this kind of work?

Good question, Iain. Sorry for the late reply, you know how distracted I am lately.

Well, I noticed that in both Bahrain and Qatar, the oldest and most well known smiths and swordmakers are Shiite, who are generally not members of tribes. Although they arent treated differently, hopefully :-)