Tabar Zin?

[kronckew]

just won another hard fought auction, beating off hoards of wealthy bidders and paying more than i can afford, but i couldn't let this one go as i was curious about it. billed as a tabar zin, or horseman's axe. e-bay no. 140275308893 for those who have the inclination. appears to be quite a small axehead if the shaft is 35in...

Axehead close-up

bit of a split in the haft, looks like it may be a recent replacement. will be interested in the measurements when it arrives....

overall view.


e-bay description:

Originally Posted by captain hogspear

We believe this item to be a Tabar Zin or tabar-i-zin (sometimes translated "saddle-hatchet"). It is an example of the traditional battle axe of Persia and Iran. The tabar is sometimes carried as a symbolic weapon by wandering dervishes (Muslim ascetic worshippers).

It is important to note that Persian weaponry is at times identical to East Indian weaponry because these two cultures have intermingled many times over the century.

"Tabar" means axe, and "zin" has to do with hanging from a horse. Some sources say that zin comes from "zar", the ancient word for war.

Approx 35" long. We are unsure of its age, late Victorian/early 20th century. Good condition. Lady Hogspear is keen that Captain Hogspear is parted from it, due to his recent propensity to frolic about and pursue her around the kitchen table with it.

little outside my normal area of interest, but i seem to be an axe magnet recently, this is my 4th in as many months. does this sound like a 'tabar zin' ?

[katana]

Hi Kronckew,
thanks for beating me on this ...could not 'counter bid' quick enough (put wrong amount in ) Glad you got it.

I believe that most 'saddle axes' were metal hafted. The axe head is perhaps a little small as well. I thought this was a 'hand axe head' on a sledge hammer/ pick ash handle.

Nice snatch

Regards David

[kronckew]

wondered who the 'horde of wealthy bidders' was. ah, well - all in the family at least i think i saw two similar to this being sold a few months ago. this may be one of them. may be a fixer-upper

[ward]

It's peninsular Arab and looks like it has original haft.
Check Elgood on Arabian arms and armor its in there.
Tabar means axe in Persian and zin means saddle btw

[kronckew]

arrived today, the haft is just under an inch in dia., and 34.5 in. long. it is of some whiteish wood, with small branch nodes spiralling down the shaft in a fibonnaci style sequence. bottom end is consistant with it being used as a walking stick.

the steel head is just under 2.9 in. from the poll to the edge at the top. thickness of the blade is almost a half inch near the eye, down to about 0.1 in. near the edge. would this be consistant with a peninsular arab axe as has been suggested?

there are some active rusty areas that i'll clean lightly and a nice dark patina overall. the 'bare' but patinated metal areas have a crystalline appearance. there are decorative lines forged in at the poll and blade sides of the eye. six forged flat-head brads/nails arranged in a rough hexagon are driven in the head end as wedges, one in the visible split. the head is on firm and unmoving. the edge is thin but not overly sharp, there are forging or strike marks on the blade.

all in all it reminds me more of my more recent hungarian fokos/polish ciupaga defense axes. it's just the right length & weight for a walking stick and the axe head makes a good hand grip. anyway i like it

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by kronckew

arrived today, the haft is just under an inch in dia., and 34.5 in. long. it is of some whiteish wood, with small branch nodes spiralling down the shaft in a fibonnaci style sequence. bottom end is consistant with it being used as a walking stick.

the steel head is just under 2.9 in. from the poll to the edge at the top. thickness of the blade is almost a half inch near the eye, down to about 0.1 in. near the edge. would this be consistant with a peninsular arab axe as has been suggested?

there are some active rusty areas that i'll clean lightly and a nice dark patina overall. the 'bare' but patinated metal areas have a crystalline appearance. there are decorative lines forged in at the poll and blade sides of the eye. six forged flat-head brads/nails arranged in a rough hexagon are driven in the head end as wedges, one in the visible split. the head is on firm and unmoving. the edge is thin but not overly sharp, there are forging or strike marks on the blade.

all in all it reminds me more of my more recent hungarian fokos/polish ciupaga defense axes. it's just the right length & weight for a walking stick and the axe head makes a good hand grip. anyway i like it

Salaams all...Whilst doing some damage control I happened upon this thread which is answered by Ward at #4 correctly ... This is, on first inspection, a Mussandam Jers axe not a Persian saddle axe ( Persian Saddle Axes illustrated in Anthony North Islamic Arms and Armour)( see Sikh soldier Nice Indo Persian Axe # 25 by Atlantia for reference) which has a totally different size and shape etc. It appears to be from Omani Mussandam Peninsula.
Another almost identical shape exists in the Omani Wahiba sands but without decoration called a Quddum. This one is probably a Mussandam Jers..from the Shehu tribe. You can see the incised geometric decorations either side of the head more typical of Mussandam ... I have to say however that this is very close in style to the Quddum and appears as all Quddum do to have a shaft roughly fitted by the owner unlike the Mussandam which are made complete by the local manufacturer ... It appears to be a Mussandam axehead fitted to a Wahiba Sands shaft. See Richardson and Dorr~ Craft Herritage of Oman ~ Axes. Regards Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[kronckew]

shukran, ibrahim, for the additional info.

i've also seen the other postings on mussandam axes here.

having meandered around the rub' al khali in the '80's, a bit further west from the musandam peninsula and the ramlat al-wahiba, i can appreciate the origins. a tough climate. hard to believe that up to 4-5000 years ago, like north africa, it was all green and there were flourishing cities there...

climate change is not a modern phenomena.

Linky-> lost cities of the rub' al-khali

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by kronckew

shukran, ibrahim, for the additional info.

i've also seen the other postings on mussandam axes here.

having meandered around the rub' al khali in the '80's, a bit further west from the musandam peninsula and the ramlat al-wahiba, i can appreciate the origins. a tough climate. hard to believe that up to 4-5000 years ago, like north africa, it was all green and there were flourishing cities there...

climate change is not a modern phenomena.

Linky-> lost cities of the rub' al-khali

Salaams kronckew ~ I know the area of Ubar well enough... In fact the local bedu knew of Ubar(from legend) but it wasnt until it was seen on a satelite photo that people pinpointed it. You could ask a bedu at one end of a long track where is Ubar and he would point up the track "Its up that way somewhere".... ...after several kilometres on arriving at the end of the track and upon asking another bedu where is Ubar he would point down the track "Its down that way somewhere".... thus it was until a certain Randolph Fynes spotted the site on satelite imagery.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[kronckew]

Ozymandias

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".

-P. B. Shelley, 1818

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by kronckew

Ozymandias

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".

-P. B. Shelley, 1818

Salaams kronckew Nice poetry !
I had the Master Stick Maker from Mussandam over for tea yesterday and we had an interesting chat about axe heads from Lima in Mussandam.. He has relatives in the Shehe family and is key to understanding the nature of that area. He has in his collection(and I will get a photo someday) of a couple of Jerrs axes .. The first is only an inch long and is said to be very old. Delightful. The second is Johar ! Indian Wootz... watered steel ! I have never seen one. It appears that the Baluch got involved in making these... Baluchistan is only across the water... and seemingly brought the ore from Hyderabad and made the items in Mekran. This is not proven but could be interesting in follow up research later. I make the note for forum library purposes. The wood on the shaft is important and he showed me examples of different hardwoods . In the Mussandam its called Meez. Its about equivalent to blackthorn and after a year drying he uses steam to straighten and a mixture of oils to treat the stick. The other hardwood is from the Jebel Akhdar and is called Atom ... which is a white timber often handcarved in geometric style. Im not sure what tree consitutes the stick used in the Wahiba sands camel driver variant known as the Qudoom or Qudum... but its like your example.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[David R]

These walking stick axes fascinate me, such a practical item for a harsh environment.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Salaams all ~ The amazing news on the block about Mussandam axes is that there are a few wootz heads and I have been promised a photo... soon.
Regards Ibrahiim al Balooshi