yataghan but confused of origin and date

TVV · 10th March 2005, 10:56 PM

Well, I am afraid the antique fixing shops in my country are more than just one, but they exist in all countries all over the world. EBay, a great help to collectors on a budget such as myself, has provided a huge boost to crooks from everywhere. Those in Bulgaria are also taking advantage of the situation, but generally, the proportion of dishonest dealers in Bulgaria is not by the least bit larger than that in Russia, Turkey, or the US for example. I would not blame the bladesmith, who fixed the yataghan and revived an old blade, but the intermediaries, who exported the piece outside of Bulgaria in violation of Bulgarian laws (interestingly, all these items dug/found in Bulgaria and offered on eBay are located in either Vegas or Germany or both at the same time) and then marketed it on eBay as an authentic piece.
Joe (I saw your name from SFI), it will be interesting to see what the inscription on the blade means. Once you get the yataghan you will be able tot ake better pics of it, and someone should be able to translate it.

ariel · 11th March 2005, 05:46 AM

No doubt, there are plenty of people who want to make a quick buck in any country.
I dealt with a couple of sellers from Bulgaria and was extremely impressed with their honesty and quality of service. One of them (I do not want to mention his name on the Forum) is almost ridiculously obsessive in listing every real or imaginary deficiency and grossly exaggerating the shortcomings of his items. Then, when the item arrives, it looks 100 times better than the description.
I would deal with him any time.
By the way, I did not know that there were restriction on exporting old weapons from Bulgaria. Can you be more specific?

TVV · 11th March 2005, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ariel

By the way, I did not know that there were restriction on exporting old weapons from Bulgaria. Can you be more specific?

Well, the general law is that items older than 1850 are a considered "national cultural monuments" (yes, this is the right translation) and are not to be exported. The law is unfortunately so vaguely stated that in its broadest interpretation could include even people. I would not worry too much about ethnographic weapons, but antiquities are deffinitely prohibited to be exported. This is more of a problem to the exporters, not the collectors. I do not think you need to worry about anything you have purchased from eBay.
Conogre: yes, I remember the exact piece you are referring to and if I remember correctly, it was marketed not as a sax but as a mahaira. With items that old it is too hard to be able to tell authenticity just from a picture, and I avoid them, even if they look very tempting.

mavi1970 · 22nd March 2005, 05:36 PM

well, i received the sword finally, and it is a quite bad reproduction as you can get. people be warry of this ebay seller "vegas and germany", the sheath has been distressed with a chemical so that the "new stained" wood and leather would look old. and the inscription on the blade is painted on with yellow paint, looked a lot better in pictures. the blade also looks new and not a true original. the brass work is also quite poor and a novice job. i guess this one wont be hung up on my wall with pride. ahaha. just a warning out to others to be carefull.

thanks for your help

TVV · 22nd March 2005, 06:48 PM

Thanks for warning us, it appears that this seller, unfortunatelly, is as a complete a crook as one can get. I am really sorry about what happened to you. The worst part of all is that this particular seller is still selling forgeries on eBay, usually for a very high price (he sold a similar yataghan just a few days ago for over $300). I do not think that even if we notify eBay, they will do anything, as they make their profits from the sellers (that is why the Chinese are still there and nobody does anything to stop auctions starting at $.99 with S&H of $100). It is just too bad.

10th March 2005, 10:56 PM	#1
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,727	Well, I am afraid the antique fixing shops in my country are more than just one, but they exist in all countries all over the world. EBay, a great help to collectors on a budget such as myself, has provided a huge boost to crooks from everywhere. Those in Bulgaria are also taking advantage of the situation, but generally, the proportion of dishonest dealers in Bulgaria is not by the least bit larger than that in Russia, Turkey, or the US for example. I would not blame the bladesmith, who fixed the yataghan and revived an old blade, but the intermediaries, who exported the piece outside of Bulgaria in violation of Bulgarian laws (interestingly, all these items dug/found in Bulgaria and offered on eBay are located in either Vegas or Germany or both at the same time) and then marketed it on eBay as an authentic piece. Joe (I saw your name from SFI), it will be interesting to see what the inscription on the blade means. Once you get the yataghan you will be able tot ake better pics of it, and someone should be able to translate it.

11th March 2005, 05:46 AM	#2
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	No doubt, there are plenty of people who want to make a quick buck in any country. I dealt with a couple of sellers from Bulgaria and was extremely impressed with their honesty and quality of service. One of them (I do not want to mention his name on the Forum) is almost ridiculously obsessive in listing every real or imaginary deficiency and grossly exaggerating the shortcomings of his items. Then, when the item arrives, it looks 100 times better than the description. I would deal with him any time. By the way, I did not know that there were restriction on exporting old weapons from Bulgaria. Can you be more specific?

22nd March 2005, 05:36 PM	#4
mavi1970 Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: canada Posts: 90	well, i received the sword finally, and it is a quite bad reproduction as you can get. people be warry of this ebay seller "vegas and germany", the sheath has been distressed with a chemical so that the "new stained" wood and leather would look old. and the inscription on the blade is painted on with yellow paint, looked a lot better in pictures. the blade also looks new and not a true original. the brass work is also quite poor and a novice job. i guess this one wont be hung up on my wall with pride. ahaha. just a warning out to others to be carefull. thanks for your help

22nd March 2005, 06:48 PM	#5
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,727	Thanks for warning us, it appears that this seller, unfortunatelly, is as a complete a crook as one can get. I am really sorry about what happened to you. The worst part of all is that this particular seller is still selling forgeries on eBay, usually for a very high price (he sold a similar yataghan just a few days ago for over $300). I do not think that even if we notify eBay, they will do anything, as they make their profits from the sellers (that is why the Chinese are still there and nobody does anything to stop auctions starting at $.99 with S&H of $100). It is just too bad.