An indian shamshir with a persian blade

[ariel]

Originally Posted by kai

Sounds like a quality blade!

Can someone comment on the quite rough inlay done for the cartouche?

Regards,
Kai

On the contrary: this is a very high quality inlay. Usually, the channels are just carved as straight lines. That’s why we often see inlays with lost wire segments.

This one is “zigzag-y” and its labor-intensive creation assures much stronger contact with the inserted wire. Yet another sign of a very high quality of work of the bladesmith.

Assadullah was regarded as THE best Persian badesmith, but the criteria were never defined. This blade, IMHO, would belong to the magical “Assadullah” class.

[kai]

Thanks again, both!

Originally Posted by ariel

On the contrary: this is a very high quality inlay. Usually, the channels are just carved as straight lines. That’s why we often see inlays with lost wire segments.

This one is “zigzag-y” and its labor-intensive creation assures much stronger contact with the inserted wire.

I know this style of inlay. This specific version seems rendered more coarse than others in this general style (not necessarily implying bad quality - just wondering whether this might start to affect the reading comprehension); I may not have looked in detail at enough Persian cartouches though.

I understand that the highest quality inlay utilizes undercut channels (i.e. widening below the surface level) which helps long-time retention of gold hammered into it.

Yet another sign of a very high quality of work of the bladesmith.

Was such inlay work actually done by the bladesmith himself or another artisan? Any differences between Persian workshops and other regions?

Regards,
Kai

[mahratt]

Originally Posted by kai

Was such inlay work actually done by the bladesmith himself or another artisan? Any differences between Persian workshops and other regions?

Kai

I think it's quite difficult to answer your question. The fact is that, in my opinion, Persian craftsmen did not necessarily work in Persia and did not necessarily apply cartouches to "classic" Persian blades.