Salaams Yaa Ustaath Dom wa mutagem ruqn wahid (Dom oh Master with number 1 Interpreter !) ~ This is the classic Emirati Style with lots of leather below the belt with scorpion patterns.. Also often seen with chevron shaped rings but not always. The belt is superb reflecting the geometry on the scabbard. :) Nice one Dom. :shrug:
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaam All ~ The use of high density modern composites on hilts.

To save the Rhino, Elephant and other endangered species here are a few alternative Omani Hilts that are very capable, properly weighted and take all the usual silver pin decoration just like horn and bone.

Oddly I have never seen Mamoth tusk used on Omani Khanjars. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Namaste Ibrahiim,

Excellent work on these hilt materials.
I absolutely applaud such a stance.
They not only look fantastic, they also preserve the traditional skills of the craftsmen who decorate them.

As this is such an important innovation in the evolution of the Omani Khanjar, perhaps you could expand on this post and tell us more about the vital work of ending the demand for new Khanjar with hilts made from endangered species and how you go about altering the more "traditional" mindsets of those who still might see them as 'current' status symbols and not simply items of historic interest?
As a dealer and maker of new Khanjar, have you developed any of these alternatives yourself?
What materials have you used, how are they made? How do they 'perform' in terms of durability etc?
Do your clients prefer them to say exotic wood or coloured cow horn?
How have your clientele reacted to their introdcution and recieved them in general? In fact have your clients led the demand for these alternatives or have you taken the chance and introduced them anyway?

Can you envision a time when public opinion in Oman might make it socially unaceptable to wear the endangered species hilts and they could be consigned to collections and museums only? (here's hoping!)

Well done again
Gene

Salaams Atlantia ~ We don't build using Rhino or Elephant unless the certification shows allowability.. In any case its a fairly rare event and hopefully the price is sufficiently steep to deter many being called for...The greater drain appears to be from medicinal herbal traditional Chinese demand... and hand carved items. Frankly we are very cautious and fully aware of the dodgey credentials offered by people selling this material ..

We use a lot of composite now .. high density plastic which is called Americy in the market place ! No one seems to mind since the finish is good and it takes all the pins etc...The trouble is that Khanjars get upgraded so it matters little what leaves the workshop if the client then or later switches to a rare hilt.

We also use good horn from basic water buffalo which polishes well, however, I am looking at Mamoth since that could be part of the answer ...and its CITES compliant. I believe that could take over from Rhino and Elephant.

Occasionally there is a call for Sandalwood hilt which is about as exotic as it gets and Sandalwood doesn't get attacked by weevil. Cowhorn is looked on as just about acceptable but its low on the spectrum.

I'm afraid the mindset is rather cemented in terms of the rare items... though we have many clients now happy with the alternatives... Unfortunately the Rhino is still intrinsically linked to the dagger. Power, prowess, rich price...for rich men... status.

I hope that with composites improving all the time including grain and texture we can narrow the use of rare hilts.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Hi Ibrahiim,

The difficulty of changing ingrained tradition cannot be easy, especially when they are linked to perceptions of status. But given the alternative, attitudes do have to change. Not only in Oman but also in the far east.

Why the lack of interest in woods?
I've seen old Khanjar with wooden hilts and it is after all, a renewable and sustainable resource. :shrug:

With the recent massive resurgence of hard-stone carving in China and India, have you ever considered sourcing hard-stone hilts as a more 'status' alternative to resins?
They could still have partial silver covers with limited pins cemented in to connect the exterior elements, in fact following the Indo-Persian/Mughal methods of decoration they could be quite elaborate.
They would also provide a wide variety of colours and some of the stones used are extremely hard and durable.
Jade, Jadeite, Bowenite Serpentine etc.....

I bet Chinese or Indian workshops could produce a standard 'I' shaped Khanjar hilt to a very high standard at very reasonale cost!

And it's a readily available material with well rooted traditions! :shrug:

Best
Gene

EDIT: Picture added. Photoshopped picture of Khanjar hilt.
Original hilt removed and space filled with picture of red jadeite.

Salaams Atlantia Stone just isn't wanted..It may be because it has the wrong weight... and oddly even the expensive stone isn't sought such as Jade...though it is for exotic Persian and Indian Daggers...Standard hardwood is looked upon as the poorest hilt...followed by cheap plastic then cowhorn.. (then there is the possibility of an almost all silver hilt) then Sandalwood then Composites then Elephant then Rhino. In the advent of a peculiar horn or bone such as Water Buffalo the place they take would be below Elephant but better than Composites... Sea animal tusk I've seen a few and they come before Elephant ... somewhere in that order.

I liked the Jadeite example you placed..Shukran.

We do make a camel stick in almost that configuration in a ceramic hilt form but its a bit unsafe ... What is the effect of dropping a stone hilted khanjar onto a stone floor from about 4 feet?... I'm sure it would fall pommel down first ... would it crack break or chip? Bone and composites don't break or chip.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Rhino Hilt.
 

Salaams All ~ Here is an old Rhino Hilt redressed with new silver for an up and coming Khanjar. Note that the plate on the front is not a solid piece... but separate silver pins:shrug:
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Pommel End Photo.

Wow its so beautiful. I can't believe someone actually sat there and put all those countless pins into that hilt.

Do show us the finished product when you are done! :shrug:

Salaams BANTARU ~ I will try to show the final complete result. Sadly the fact is that Rhino makes such an attractive hilt because of this translucence and the variety of colours in the different types ... In addition Rhino is perfect for using the very close silver pin technique since other materials split. Rhino hilt is also very robust and even if thrown to the floor it bounces... whilst other materials can crack. Fortunately we now see a fair number of composite materials substituting Rhino or horn but nothing gets close enough to Rhino ...

For a brief look at what we are trying to save see # 55 by Spiral and http://www.african-elephant.org/pachy/index.html

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

In a jambiya or a khanjar, the hilt is probably the oldest. The hilt (and sometimes the blade) is the most expensive and treasured part of the dagger so it gets refurbished often and as style changes, you get to see those pins sometimes covered by the silver sheet which have became the new fashion or something.

Salaams A.alnakkas,
I'm not sure about that since the blade seems to be the most admired and important part of the ensemble...at least thats what the locals ponder over when they are checking out a Khanjar. They smell it and even taste it! It even has to have the right musical note when struck. Locally made blades are the most expensive. However, a good hilt comes in a close second and certainly huge value is placed on Rhino and Elephant.

On the subject of pins I believe this to be a vital point since it is really only Rhino hilts that can safely take the closely hammered pins as other materials tend to split. Pins are used to decorate other horn hilts but they are not hammered so closely. It therefor becomes a mark of quality... i.e. Closely hammered pin decoration = Rhino hilt. A good hilt is just about recognisable from about 4 feet away ! (I mean you dont want to get too close!)

I wonder which came first; the pins or the technique of using sheet silver? My hypothesis leans toward the Rhino hilt plus pins since I am quite convinced of the importance of the entire weapon and its link to the Rhino both because of the hilt... and the curve in the dagger and the added apparent curve in the scabbard... I suggest the entire Khanjar is Rhino inspired (Hilt, Scabbard and Blade) though no proof exists other than that.

In keeping with that theory I have also argued that the closely decorated pins reflect/ resemble the spaghetti ended strata of translucent Rhino Horn...

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salam,

I am not sure about the smell and taste part. Because some of the finer blades are polished and cleaned very often which means they'd likely smell and taste of polish material. The finger flick and sound thing is something that I am beginning to see often, but to detect the material of the steel rather than the quality, as wootz supposedly sounds different from other steels.

Anyways, one of my new khanjars with a rhino hilt arrived afew weeks ago and it seems to have a wootz blade, a rarity in Omani khanjars. Will post pictures once I am done with the etching and satisfied with the result.

Lotfy

Salaams A.alnakkas ~ I know it sounds very odd...but tasting the blade ... and smelling it are very much the old way of determining a blades quality...A good blade has the aroma of ...herbs and sweaty socks ! as does the taste. The old folks don't clean the blades with metal polish.

Wootz blades are very rare because they simply don't go for that as a style but locally made blades are sought after ...and they are laminated. I suspect that a wootz blade could have come from India or Iran/Afghanistan along with the generally known name of Johar...In fact I was just reading a fine article by Dr Ann Feuerbach in which she mentions the wootz material from which I believe the word Johar originates; Poulad Jauherder.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams All~ Adding more to our library of Rhino Hilt data base detail. This Khanjar is without its scabbard. Nice old blade on a reworked Rhino Hilt. The Hilt can best be described as "Dull Yellow" until a light brings out the translucent effect and the spaghetti ends of the Rhino Horn. The pins in this case are close but not actually tight close as is the often seen application of silver pin work on this quality of Horn. It can be seen however that the pins follow a geometric pattern and great care has been taken in producing the effect. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Rhino.
 

Salaams All; More Rhino for Library;

Note that this is a "4 Ringer" Baatinah Khanjar (Oman Coast roughly between Muscat and Mussandam ) mounted on a Rhino Hilt and displaying the "Eyes of The Bedu" decoration on the lower scabbard. Also seen are both silver(pure silver) and gold(gold plated) thread decorating the scabbard For the hawkeyed amongst you please note that this is infact the same weapon as at #35 except that in, addition, I now show the light on the hilt and an end of hilt pommel shot ...:shrug:
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams All,
Here's the scabbard we sourced to match the hilt previously seen at #87...Well here are all the parts ! We just need to fit it all together !! Then the whole ensemble will be cleaned up and at about that point it will begin its journey of acquiring "Patina", however, silver being relatively soft and prone to oxidisation this ought to only take about 6 months.

The scabbard is an Emirati (UAE) Style and favours the very vast expanse of leather showing below the belt ~ though the toe floral decoration is typically Nizwa, Oman, done before the UAE formation when these countries were blended together loosely as one. :) (Trucial Oman States)(Muscat and Oman)

Afternote ~ The leather is hand tooled in simple floral geometry. Please also note that the central plate wrapped around the hilt midsection is hand decorated silver sheet... but the rest of the silver on the hilt comprises several thousand small silver pins hammered so closely they look like one sheet.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

A couple of Thesinger's photos

Salaams RhysMichael ~ I will dig out some Wilfred Thesiger pictures with Omani Khanjars...The examples shown are probably Yemeni Jambia.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Thank you Ibrahiim I look forward to them

Salaams RhysMichael ~ I met Wilfred 4 times. They called him Mubarrak bil London around here... Here he is wearing an Omani Khanjar which appears to be off the Baatinah coast. ( From the Thesiger Collection by Motivate Publishing ISBN 1 8735 44 316 )

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

wow you met him! :eek:

Luck you. I wish I could meet him. was it recently (like within 10 years ago), or was it from the times when he used to roam around like a nomad? That guy is like the Lawrence of Arabia of the trucial coast.

btw he was called Umbarak I think.

Salaams BANTARU ~ Yes Umbarak or Mubarak bil London ... he was the last of the great European explorers after WW 2 in Arabia. He is a legend here. I first met him in about 1989 when he was on a visit here and then several times after that but sadly he died a few years ago in London. Some lady stood up at the first meeting and asked Wilfred what he would change if he could in his lifetime...There was absolute silence ... and he pondered for a moment and said...in his very proper Oxford accent..."The um... Internal combustion engine" ! Wilfred was completely bedouin at heart and would have everyone back on donkeys and camels and never mind the 21st Century !!

I was fortunate to meet him before he died and took him to see a local friend, one of the beni kaab, on his farm near here. Wilfred was very frail and would have the odd flash back to when he was in the same area years ago and spoke to me as he thought I was Bin Gabaisha. There he was .. this amazing old man who had walked/camel ridden the entire rub al Qali several times in the most fiercely hot weather and often hostile surroundings where if he had been caught he would most certainly have been killed. They don't make them like that anymore.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaam Wajah,

hahaha yes I almost byhearted his book. I remember him expressing his dislike for motor-cars in it. Truly, I think along his same lines. I prefer the bedu on camels ,rather than flashy cars. They look so elegant and noble on them.

Wow thats nice of you. I heard Bin Kabina & Bin Ghabhaisha are still alive. I wish I could talk to them. theres so much to know. Bin Kabina is currently in Saudi Arabia I guess. Bin Ghobaisha was the most notorious outlaw of the Trucial Coast, after Thesiger left. He had many blood feuds on his hand, and was even imprisoned by the Emir of Sharjah.

anyways I guess you know all of this. :shrug:


you are right. The hardy adaptable colonial Englishman is very rare these days. I wish things were actually back like then. . :(

I would have loved to have met him and just listened to some of the stories he could have told. To quote Buffett "Our lives change like the weather but a legend never dies" Thanks for posting the picture

SANDALWOOD HILT.
 

Salaams All. A Sandalwood hilt for library. This Khanjar is a Baatinah design similar to #61 and the weapon being made at # 5. The design of the belt link hook assembly is quite unusual. :)

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Spotting Fakes.
 

Salaams All ~ The most common style of fake Khanjar for sale in the souks is based on the Royal Khanjar style ... The blade has a rather weak tinny ding to it and the metal is very shiny whitemetal or zinc looking. The rings tend to be a bit thin and small. The hilts are made of cheap wood. Look around the shop you may well see a heap of these ready to roll out once one is sold. No attempt has been made by the automatic workshop (somewhere in India)to individualise each Khanjar and if you can pick up two just check the details ...Copied fakes are usually identical. Heres five;

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

The Eyes of the Bedouin design.
 

Salaams All; Note to Library. This Khanjar shows clearly the design known as The Eyes of The Bedouin, and is a Coastal, Baatinah style of 4 ringer. The hilt is poly. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

How to clean silver?
 

How to clean silver?

Salaams all ~ I have said that a quick way to clean silver is with toothpaste, however, there are some pretty effective brands like silvo which also do a good job. The traditional workshops use a burnishing technique that I have already described at http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...omani+khanjars ..see # 26.

Another technique is with lemon juice. Literally squeze one lemon and using the juice and brush (I use a brass wire or copper wire brush) then rinse the object under clean water and repeat where needed... then rinse and dry... job done.

I show a pair of bangles; "Stars of the bedouin" and a pair of ear rings " halaq" (incomplete) one piece of each is cleaned. Silver is quite pure and oxidises quite quickly so the patina will come back in a few months. The wire brush is able to shift the oxide easily but doesn't scratch the silver.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

How to Clean Ancient Bronze, Brass & Copper?
 

Salaams, Ibrahim,

Long time no talk to! How have you been keeping? How's the shop going? I know you're especially busy this time of year, so I'll try to be brief. Unfortunately, I am a novelist (i.e., a windbag), so please bear with me.

Ibrahim, in your business, do you have much dealing with older copper, bronze, brass or silver materials? I've lately begun collecting ancient Viking relics from the Baltic region, where they first began sailing around raiding their neighbors and acting like outlaw bikers of the sea, back in the 7th Century. As a result, I'm dealing with a lot of truly ancient, long-buried items that are as much as 1200-1300 years old. You can imagine what they look like by the time I see them. Most don't even resemble the items they used to be (jewelry, flints, arrowheads, etc.) I'll attach a couple of Before and After photos of some Viking rings I bought recently, so you can see what these old pieces can turn into after the right amount of massaging, rubbing and begging.

So, my question, good sir, is this: Do you know of any do-it-yourself, home recipes for cleaning ancient bronze, brass or copper? I'm looking for something you can whip together in your own kitchen that's inexpensive, effective, yet gentle (especially on brass). Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks in advance, my friend, for any advice you might have.

Sincerely,

John, i.e., NovelsRus

Salaams NovelsRus, See http://robertbeauford.net/cleaning_ancient_coins and see how the expert on antiquity and restoration of such items carefully explains the whole thing... This website has everything you will need. The cleaning tips are well researched ~ just follow his advice.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Thanks, Ibrahim! I'll check out the site ASAP.

All best wishes,

John

The Muscat Khanjar
 

Salaams All ~ Note to Forum. The Muscat Khanjar with cloth belt and money container worn on the belt.(often 2)

The Muscat Khanjar another example of which is at Ruth Hawleys masterwork Omani Silver

The Muscat Khanjar is typically made with a TEE shaped hilt and the main body of the scabbard displays the same ring formation as the Royal Khanjar(see #1) and must surely have been the main influence on Sheherazade who designed the Royal Khanjar hilt matching it to a 7 ringer Scabbard in similar fashion...in about 1850

What is nice about the little money container is that it has 33 little circles decorating the front cover illustrating the geometric indicator for all the words for God... in the short version 33... In the full version 100.

This Khanjar was bought in Mutrah in the early 70s and is a fine example with a cowhorn hilt and very nice silver work.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams; Support to above post. The unit has a work knife of which the best are English or German Sheffield or Solingen cake/butter knives with reworked silver handles(occasionally gilded in gold wash like this one). Please note the way the belt is fixed to the buckle... This is the correct way using a simple leather strip as opposed to silver buttons. Both methods are correct but the leather way is the simpler...The overall design is based on the square within a square combined with the geometric figure 5 motif. and an all over filigree dense surround.. and at its centre the silver Mulberry fruit cluster (not cannon balls!) The Mulberry tree is common throughout Oman.

Meanwhile the hilt is nicely finished off on the back with sheet silverwork. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams all Note to Forum;

Fine old UAE KHANJAR made in the Dhakiliyya (Interior of Oman) and refitted from the parts shown earlier on this thread..see #97. It still needs to be cleaned up and polished for wearing on a clean dishdash but here it is refitted and almost ready... The Belt is a traditional and famous UAE pattern hand stitched on leather.
For interest I show the Omani silver stitched belts for comparison in design. The UAE belt shows a lot of leather echoing the leather displayed below the belt whereas in Omani Khanjars the belt reflects the more intricate design in the same part of the scabbard.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams all, Note to Forum; Good Khanjar from the Baatinah coast with an old blade, belt and mangash (tweezer and spikes set) The hilt is cowhorn. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams all Note to Forum ~ There are several other items that may or may not be attached to the Khanjar and Belt (or gunbelt) Here are some below... Note that the Mungash is a combination item with tweezers and spikes both in steel and carried in a bullet cartridge shaped container similar to the Kohl container.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi. :shrug:

Salaams All; Note to Forum Library~

Adding this design to the floral geometry of Khanjars from the Baatinah Coast of Oman. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Salaams All ~Stunning Omani Khanjar. This dagger looks for an equally impressive scabbard etc and is an antique Rhino Hilt with a beautiful old blade displaying two sets of triple dots either side of the blade ridge.

The silver to the hilt is new. :shrug:

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Sallams All ~ Note to Forum Library.

The name of this hilt takes its name from...The USA ... Known locally as "Americky" this hilt gathers quite a following as it is easy to work with and can take close pinning of silver nails etc without splitting. It can be shaped, drilled, sawn and carved well and comes in several colours including black. It is lightweight and balances well with the knife blade and lasts for a very long time. Hilt "Americky".