Jambiya plastic

[kahnjar1]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Salaams ericlaude ~

Thankyou for the excellent pictures of The Omani Khanjar..

1. The hilt could be a bakelite or plastic variant which looks like it has been burned or covered in pitch/perhaps the material that welds the blade in place... A resin.

2. The item looks original and is unusual for a few reasons notably;

a. The vertical grooves in the hilt above the cuff number 33. Reflected in the same number of verticals above the belt section (IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII) The 33 names of God in the short form. The number of prayer beads in a normal short string (the long form is 99)
b. The 3 ridge blade taking after the 3 ridge or 3 fuller sword blade called abu thalath musayil.. ? The one with the three...As for watered steel; Omani Khanjars don't have wootz blades....Not Omani Style.
c. The peculiar geometry on the scabbard reflected in the toe (Quba) may indicate an out of Oman Khanjar style possibly UAE.

This Omani made Khanjar poses a number of question and could be from the Shimaliyya (northern region) or the Sharqiyya(eastern region) or in fact made in Oman for the UAE market. Certainly it is not a tourist job.

I need to tout this question around a while before we can be sure.

Meanwhile please see The Omani Khanjar which is a growing resource on this specialised weapon. The Omani Khanjar

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

I have resurrected this thread as it would appear that the origin of this piece has not yet been decided.
Any further thoughts?
Regards Stu

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by kahnjar1

I have resurrected this thread as it would appear that the origin of this piece has not yet been decided.
Any further thoughts?
Regards Stu

Salaams kahnjar1 ~ My view is that this is an Omani made Khanjar for the UAE market after which another blade has been placed possibly Indian... and the hilt has been burned in a fire or coated in a sort of burned grease effect... It would benefit from a replacement hilt and a straightening of the blade which perhaps is also loose and appears to have slipped into the hilt too far. Other upgrades would include a decent UAE belt and work knife etc after which the whole thing polished up would be pretty decent I would have thought.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[kahnjar1]

Thanks for your comment Ibrahiim. So we definately have an Omani Khanjar.
I believe that Yemeni makers have had access to blade making machinery, and that blades of this sort were occasionly found on their work. So the possibility exists that this blade originated there.
As to putting new bits unnecessarily on older pieces, I think you by now must know my feeling about this. Great idea if thats what you deal in, but again it's creating something which is NOT original.
Regards Stu

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by kahnjar1

Thanks for your comment Ibrahiim. So we definately have an Omani Khanjar.
I believe that Yemeni makers have had access to blade making machinery, and that blades of this sort were occasionly found on their work. So the possibility exists that this blade originated there.
As to putting new bits unnecessarily on older pieces, I think you by now must know my feeling about this. Great idea if thats what you deal in, but again it's creating something which is NOT original.
Regards Stu

Made in Oman for sure. For the UAE market / client. Could be an Indian or Yemeni replacement blade.
On replacement parts ~ By nature the Omani Khanjar is a multiple set of parts very often with replaced blades and occasionally hilts. Belts and add ons get replaced all the time. Upgrading Khanjars is what Omani men do all the time... Its part and parcel of the Khanjar situation and is normal proceedure. ... All Khanjar dealers in Oman have access to the vast range of spare parts we need to carry and most either have their own workshops like us or blister onto a local one for minor repairs and upgrades. It seems peculiar to the Khanjar, since, how many ethnographic daggers are there around with upwards of 10 separate parts?
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[David]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Made in Oman for sure. For the UAE market / client. Could be an Indian or Yemeni replacement blade.
On replacement parts ~ By nature the Omani Khanjar is a multiple set of parts very often with replaced blades and occasionally hilts. Belts and add ons get replaced all the time. Upgrading Khanjars is what Omani men do all the time... Its part and parcel of the Khanjar situation and is normal proceedure. ... All Khanjar dealers in Oman have access to the vast range of spare parts we need to carry and most either have their own workshops like us or blister onto a local one for minor repairs and upgrades. It seems peculiar to the Khanjar, since, how many ethnographic daggers are there around with upwards of 10 separate parts?
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Ibrahiim, I believe that there is a big difference between what Omani men do within the acceptance of their own culture and what collectors of antique edged weapons are willing to do in regards to the weapons they collect from other cultures. The collection of antique weapons (well anything antique really) usually involves an interest in the preservation of the history of the piece collected. Therefore the collector isn't looking to create a pristine piece of their own accord (though finding a true antique in pristine condition is something of a "holy grail" for many). This is obviously not the case in regards to an Omani man who still uses the blade in question as part of their traditional garb. For him keeping the blade upgraded and pristine is a matter of pride for a weapon that is still in "service", so to speak.
Something similar can be found in the Indonesian keris BTW. There are many parts to the keris which are often upgraded within the tradition, such as sheaths, sheath parts (pendok), mendaks, hilts and even gonjos at times. Blades can also be traditionally upgraded with the application of gold to the blade (kinatah). In certain areas of Indonesia it is acceptable to reshape worn out edges. To some extent the keris collecting community, even many outside the culture, have embraced the idea of upgrading, though for me some go too far. As an outsider, i would never dream of adding kinatah to a blade, for instance. That is done as a matter of honor and reward within the culture. I will clean and restore sheaths, to a certain extent, replace a lost mendak or pendok and clean and stain a blade that is in need. I would even commission a new sheath for a blade that goes without, but would rather maintain or restore an original sheath if the blade has one already in good repair. What i do see happen at times in the keris community is dress upgrades that far exceed the quality and status of the blade itself. For me this is unacceptable, but it has become a common practice.

[kahnjar1]

Originally Posted by David

Ibrahiim, I believe that there is a big difference between what Omani men do within the acceptance of their own culture and what collectors of antique edged weapons are willing to do in regards to the weapons they collect from other cultures. The collection of antique weapons (well anything antique really) usually involves an interest in the preservation of the history of the piece collected. Therefore the collector isn't looking to create a pristine piece of their own accord (though finding a true antique in pristine condition is something of a "holy grail" for many). This is obviously not the case in regards to an Omani man who still uses the blade in question as part of their traditional garb. For him keeping the blade upgraded and pristine is a matter of pride for a weapon that is still in "service", so to speak.
Something similar can be found in the Indonesian keris BTW. There are many parts to the keris which are often upgraded within the tradition, such as sheaths, sheath parts (pendok), mendaks, hilts and even gonjos at times. Blades can also be traditionally upgraded with the application of gold to the blade (kinatah). In certain areas of Indonesia it is acceptable to reshape worn out edges. To some extent the keris collecting community, even many outside the culture, have embraced the idea of upgrading, though for me some go too far. As an outsider, i would never dream of adding kinatah to a blade, for instance. That is done as a matter of honor and reward within the culture. I will clean and restore sheaths, to a certain extent, replace a lost mendak or pendok and clean and stain a blade that is in need. I would even commission a new sheath for a blade that goes without, but would rather maintain or restore an original sheath if the blade has one already in good repair. What i do see happen at times in the keris community is dress upgrades that far exceed the quality and status of the blade itself. For me this is unacceptable, but it has become a common practice.

Thank you David for this. I think that you have hit the nail on the head, and I hope that others here accept that as collectors, we seek ORIGINALITY and not some recently embelished alteration to an item, which may, in less honest hands become a fraudulent mis-representation.
Regards Stuart

[David]

Originally Posted by kahnjar1

Thank you David for this. I think that you have hit the nail on the head, and I hope that others here accept that as collectors, we seek ORIGINALITY and not some recently embelished alteration to an item, which may, in less honest hands become a fraudulent mis-representation.
Regards Stuart

Thanks Stuart, but i also hope that you can see that this issue cuts (yes, pun intended ) both ways. In the end i believe that it all depends upon the culture in which you operate and what your intentions for the blade will be. If your are operating within a culture where the tradition calls for upgrades and your intention is to use that blade for your own cultural purposes (as part of tradition wear or practice), then it seems perfectly legitimate to me to make appropriate upgrades. If, however, you are upgrading blades in order to create more pristine objects for sale to a collecting community, well, i think that is another story.
I suppose that in the end the old adage, caveat emptor, applies. If a particular blade form is of interest to you it is probably best to learn to recognize as best one can what an upgrade looks like. In the keris world we are often presented with newly dressed blades and it is completely acceptable. We understand that old blades most often out live wooden scabbards and also hilts. We also learn to recognize what a fairly original ensemble looks like. Sometimes we do struggle with knowing just how much the keris may have been upgraded. Have new features been carved? Has gold kinatah been added? Most times you can tell. Sometimes you cannot and simply have to decide if you like the keris enough to not care if it has been upgraded solely for resale purposes.