Chowmahalla Palace Arms Collection

mrcjgscott · 16th May 2012, 11:05 PM

Hello Emanuel,

Many thanks indeed for taking the time to post such a beautiful selection. Hopefully one day I can see them in person!

Chris

Emanuel · 18th May 2012, 10:04 AM

Well folks, I had hoped to show you more from the Salar Jung Museum but sadly they did not allow entry with cameras.

The museum is undergoing total renovation so things were a mess, but the arms actually on display were quite nice.

A fair number of swords of all kinds, unfortunately all of them in scabbard. The collection has a huge number of jade-hilted daggers of all kinds. Jade + gems + gold/silver + enamel, lots of it. A good number of rock crystal handles as well. Invariably these daggers do not have tangs. The blades might be amazing, but such knives were purely ornamental.

Another interesting thing is this "monstrous" zhulfiqar-type tulwar with serrated edges. When it first came up on the forum, it was opined that, based on the hilt, it might be an 18th century type, but that the blade might be later 19th century. In the pictures above (post #7) you can see two identical pieces from the Chowmahalla Palace collection. I saw two more, nearly identical at the Salar Jung museum, with the same beefy tips and serrations, with matched khanda basket hilt and blade. So we have four examples in Hyderabad, where they enjoyed some popularity with both the Nizams and their prime ministers (salar jungs).

Has anyone seen them elsewhere in India? Could these be a native Deccani type, or were these collected as curiosities by the Hyderabadi rulers? Upon re-reading the old "Monstrous..." thread I see that Jim's nickel is very well placed, as usual

. B.I. considered the handle of southern style but couldn't reconcile the Islamic zhulfiqar symbology with the Deccan. Hyderabad seems to fit the bill.

Emanuel

TimW · 18th May 2012, 10:06 AM

Now i know where all the good stuff is hidden...

Blacksmith · 22nd May 2012, 06:36 AM

Hi, they have a couple of these swords in Delhi, at the National Museum.They are displayed with the serrated naga sword, serrated sulfikar type tulwar, a whole steel mace and them all are labelled as `pahari`weapons.
Regards, Timo
ps. Hyderebad will be on my itinerary next time when going to India!

Shimmerxxx · 15th January 2013, 03:27 PM

I am blown away by these photos, thanks so much for sharing.

They even have a couple of haladies, hurrah!

18th May 2012, 10:04 AM	#2
Emanuel Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 1,242	Well folks, I had hoped to show you more from the Salar Jung Museum but sadly they did not allow entry with cameras. The museum is undergoing total renovation so things were a mess, but the arms actually on display were quite nice. A fair number of swords of all kinds, unfortunately all of them in scabbard. The collection has a huge number of jade-hilted daggers of all kinds. Jade + gems + gold/silver + enamel, lots of it. A good number of rock crystal handles as well. Invariably these daggers do not have tangs. The blades might be amazing, but such knives were purely ornamental. Another interesting thing is this "monstrous" zhulfiqar-type tulwar with serrated edges. When it first came up on the forum, it was opined that, based on the hilt, it might be an 18th century type, but that the blade might be later 19th century. In the pictures above (post #7) you can see two identical pieces from the Chowmahalla Palace collection. I saw two more, nearly identical at the Salar Jung museum, with the same beefy tips and serrations, with matched khanda basket hilt and blade. So we have four examples in Hyderabad, where they enjoyed some popularity with both the Nizams and their prime ministers (salar jungs). Has anyone seen them elsewhere in India? Could these be a native Deccani type, or were these collected as curiosities by the Hyderabadi rulers? Upon re-reading the old "Monstrous..." thread I see that Jim's nickel is very well placed, as usual . B.I. considered the handle of southern style but couldn't reconcile the Islamic zhulfiqar symbology with the Deccan. Hyderabad seems to fit the bill. Emanuel Attached Images Last edited by Emanuel; 18th May 2012 at 10:14 AM.

22nd May 2012, 06:36 AM	#4
Blacksmith Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Finland Posts: 98	Big sulfikar Hi, they have a couple of these swords in Delhi, at the National Museum.They are displayed with the serrated naga sword, serrated sulfikar type tulwar, a whole steel mace and them all are labelled as `pahari`weapons. Regards, Timo ps. Hyderebad will be on my itinerary next time when going to India!

16th May 2012, 11:05 PM	#1
mrcjgscott Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 189	Hello Emanuel, Many thanks indeed for taking the time to post such a beautiful selection. Hopefully one day I can see them in person! Chris

18th May 2012, 10:06 AM	#3
TimW Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 54	Now i know where all the good stuff is hidden...

15th January 2013, 03:27 PM	#5
Shimmerxxx Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Wickford, UK Posts: 54	I am blown away by these photos, thanks so much for sharing. They even have a couple of haladies, hurrah!