OLD SYRIAN JAMBIYA
 

Hello All!

Today I just got the Syrian jambiya in and is more butiful than the pictures on the auction show! The blade is well forged and still sharp despite the heavy pitting and signs of heavy use the blade shoes. The handle turned out to be horn with bone spacers with brass end caps. To me the blade seems a bit older than the hilt chould it possibly be a older blade that has been rehilted or maybe the hilt has survived better than the blade. The auction says it may have been a ground down european sword but on close looking it apperars the blade is now what it has always been. It has a very authentic feel and I checked the blade for the sighns of beenig deiped in acid but the age seems to be authentic. I guess it's age at early to mid 19th. century. Maybe some one on here can confirm it's age or give me a bacround on this type of dagger?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWN%3AIT&rd=1

Mark...

The way it looks to me is that the blade is older then the hilt. The hilt was made almost a century later and made for the blade. The blade looks authentic, but in bad shape, like it had been in an acid bath or buried for a long time in acidic soil. I sold my Syrian-Lebanese jambiya with a very similar style blade (in great condition). The holes in the blade may have had inlay of either colored bone or low quality gems like onyx.

Hello Battara!

To me the hilt eems in much better condition despite the signs of wear and age cracks on the horn and bone. Perhaps the person who made the hilt found the blade in the sand or something but the steel seems to be of good quality. The acid soil is a good theroy considering it is a desert.


Mark...

I think that blade may have just seen some hard times. Artzi may be able to comment, but usually that style knife is from a specific (and somewhat recent) period of Syrian history. It looks like the typical Golan Heights knives made during the French occupation. They still make copies today, but this one is real.

Hello Derek!

Interesting, cosidering how beat up the blade is this whould not surise me so does this mean the hily is it's origenal? If it is just a well used blade then what is it's approx. age? I find it interesting that it came from the Golan Hegits because I am curently readin a book about the Six Days War!

Mark...

Hello All!

Since this dagger is missing it's sheath I plan to make a new one out of brass. But I only have one example of a sheath for this type of dagger so I please ask that anyone with a sheath to this type of dagger post pictures on this thread so that I have something to work off of.

Mark...

Hello Mark,
I prefere the word scabbard:) A sheath is something rather different :D Or am I just a little sensitive. :o Tim

Hello Tim!

Scabbard sound much better than sheath, sometimes I get my terms mixed up! :) And no your not being sensitive, we all have our preferences like I prefer to call Iran ;"Persia" instead.

Mark...