Rare Mughal Dagger

[Shakethetrees]

Thank you Jens and Jose for your comments.

The holes drilled appear to be positioned beneath the settings. These are no more than pilot holes for larger holes to remove stock for the settings. Another smaller tool was used to shape it to accommodate the setting fully.

I don't know if the bottoms were overlaid with thin sheet gold, possibly, but the only thing holding the stones were the undercuts in the carving of the matrix.

Gold, well annealed, is extremely soft, softer by orders of magnitude than even fine silver, so it theoritically is like putty, smeared down and forced into and under the undercuts, cold.

If heat enough to affect the softness of the gold, (roughly 1000 degrees F.), the stone or ivory would be ruined.

This has piqued my interest. If I can find some time I will attempt to do a small demonstration piece and report back.

[estcrh]

A few more excellent examples.

[Battara]

Shakethetrees, you bring up some points I haven't thought of. And I forgot about the heat effecting the stones. In fact it would change the color of the stones at the very least. Also not aware of the holes being drill holes to take out the stones and inlay.

If you could experiment and show the results that would be great. I still am a little hazy about the the process.

[Jens Nordlunde]

I too was wondering how much heat a jade hilt could take.
Here are the two pictures. It is clear that the hilt has been striped for gold and gems, and it is also clear that the gems were replaced with glass/crystal, and the gold with lead(?) covered with a thin gold foil.

[ariel]

Jens,
Sorry for my mistake: the original photo was not very detailed. This was NOT a Marvari horse, this was indeed Nilgai.

[estcrh]

Originally Posted by ariel

Jens,
Sorry for my mistake: the original photo was not very detailed. This was NOT a Marvari horse, this was indeed Nilgai.

Ariel, somehow I have never seen the marvari before, a very beautiful horse.

The Marwari horse of today is descended from the splendid war horses that have served the ruling families and warriors of feudal India. Then, and throughout most of India's history, their status was unparalleled. They were declared divine, and superior to all men, including those of royal blood. Accordingly, only the Rajput families and the Kshatriyas, the warrior caste, were permitted to mount these exalted animals.

It is thanks to the surviving Rajput families and horse lovers from all communities that the resilient and beautiful Marwari has emerged from a period of neglect and the threat of extinction during the years of the British Empire and the early days of Indian democracy.

The Marwari horse is native to the Marwar region of India, its origins entwined with local folklore. According to Shri Mahant Baba Balak Dasji Maharaj, the head Priest of the Monastery at Kalabar, the breed can be traced to a period, "when the ocean was churned to extract nectar for the Gods, a period when horses had wings."

The Rathores, a warrior clan of the Raiputs, were driven from their kingdom of Kannaju around the 12th century. The harsh and desolate land in which they resettled was known as "Maru Pradesh," the land of death, and it required a rugged horse. The native Marwari horse proved well suited for both the desert and its role in battle for the Rathore cavalry.


During the Middle Ages, the principal occupation of the Rathores of Marwar was breeding Marwari horses. Under the reign of the Mogul Emperor Akbar, the Raiputs fielded a force of 50,000 men and horses, and the Marwari horse began famous for bringing back riders who became lost in the desert.

The Marwari breed has long been noted for its exceptional hearing: allowing both horse and rider early warning of impending danger. The brave Raiput went to battle believing there was no better way to die than on the field. And the Marwari became one with their masters. There were only three ways a Marwari cavalry horse left a battlefield: one was when he was victorious; another was when he carried his wounded master to safety; and the last was when he lay down his life for his master.

[Jens Nordlunde]

Ariel,
No problem :-). I had to look twice as well to see it, and like you say, the picture is not too good.

The dagger hilt I have shown can be a bit tricky. It is known that many daggers were stripped for gold and gems, like mine was, but I have also, very long ago, seen a dagger where the gold and most of the gems had been removed and replaced with fakes, but for some reason or other a few of the gems were the real ones. Dont ask me why, as I am not able to answer the question - veneration maybe.

[ALEX]

Jens, you're certainly right. and thanks for pointing out the difference between Nilgai and Marwari)
As you know, the Kundan is still practiced in certain part of India, and some artists produce it with incredible accuracy and relatively close to original. here is lesser quality example, to demonstrate it can be "applied" on material other than mineral, in this case it is on resin done with earlier described technique.