Kattara restoration

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by SwordsAntiqueWeapons

Yes my mind boggles at the denial and that your eyes are so closed. You defend a theory you consider 100% absolute with never a chance of a single individual in the past straying from this conviction of yours...

The souk items you speak of are not even a shadow of the old swords in the style we differ opinion on, the notion is void in when comparing these and old examples.

By your reckoning, in 1744 onwards, a new hilted was just designed and everyone queued for the next 100 years to get one and not a single person re-hilted an old battle sword or an heirloom blade in this "newer" style hilt.

Through divine intervention, they all kept their old battle swords at home and rushed off to the nearest market place to buy a new type of sword they can dance with because they all had pockets full of gold and a desire to "keep up with the Jones’s", this and sword makers were pumping these new swords out by the tens of thousands to appease the masses during this time....sounds like an economy stimulus package.

By this reckoning, simply by these people then keeping these old straight battle swords with quillons, there should be so many available to collectors to sight, yet they remain elusive I would say 1 old for every 50 new would be generous....but hang on Hilda, they now, during this period of 1744 onwards, suddenly chose to use a curved sword with the dancing hilt for fighting, never a straight sword with this new hilt, gentlemen of the period just thought how cool it would be to forget all they learned with the old straight sword, a comfort and knowledge ingrained in to their very being to suddenly adopt a curved sword...but hang on again, NO, you'll tell me they all continued to use their old straight battle swords right up until the early 20th century based on one photo.

We continue to venture through the lands of Dragons and Makara.

Gavin

You are trying to prove ...with your square boomerang theory...that there is another type of Omani sword...a peculiar as yet not recognised stiff battle blade built around the dancing sword framework ...when in fact there has never been such a weapon. I have shown you where and how these swords of Ethiopian/ German decent have been done up for the Tourist market but you just don't believe me. I find it hilarious... however, I have given you the facts ... Go ahead and try to prove your new fighting-dancing sword theory.

You have quite a weird imagination and view of how the dancing sword/ battle sword and kattara evolved in the process...It is likely that the honorific dynastic dancing item commenced at palace guard and militia levels and diffused into the relatively small city/town populations over the decades following the Dynastic start date of 1744... not overnight ! It took on the hilt of the slaver weapon..the kattara ...and was sharp and round tipped reflecting the old battle sword...The dancing sword was relatively easy and quick to make..Flexibility was its key component. Two main centres Nizwa and Muscat as well as lesser village smiths Sanau, Sohar, Salalah would have been in on the production as well as the wandering gypsy sword makers.There was no relationship the old Battle sword blades being cross hilted to produce a sort of dancer-battle blade...or a separate specific straight battle bladed sword on a conical hilt.. None. It is not in this countrys history.

The only way this has crept into some peoples imaginations is because of the recent surge in Tourist rehilts as earlier described and since 1970.

The Battle Sword was the fighting blade. The Dancing Sword was for Pageants and Salutation..being important and encapsulated in the Funun..

If there was this ghost blade that you imagine and have concocted because you have made a mistake in being sucked in by a Tourist item...do you not think had this been a fact that I would have spotted it? Do you not think there would be examples in the Richardson and Dorr volumes....or in any of the Omani Museums...? It's funny but perhaps they seem to have overlooked it.

You have dreamed this one up. There is no such thing. Like the square boomerang? (I assume that your reference to Dragons and Makara is the out of context throw away addition added because you don't believe Kastane have hilts in that related form?...) Oh dear...

Ibrahiim al Balooshi.