South Iraqi dagger for comments

motan · 15th July 2017, 12:37 AM

Hi all,
I bought this one sometime ago, but got it just yesterday. As you an see in the first pic from the auctioneer, the blade was very rusty and I had to use aggressive methods to clean it.
This is so called "Marsh Arab" dagger. I have seen many pictures, but never had one in my hand. This is the most basic version (more elaborate one is shown in pic 2), but I was impressed by the quality of the materials and the workmanship. Smooth and tight finish and precise fit. In many ways, it resembles the Kurdish dagger, like the hilt made of single piece of black buffalo horn, the tooled leather scabbard and the way the blade is inserted into the hilt. However, the Kurdish dagger really looks very practical, while these have a peculiar slender shape that doest not look very much like a fighting weapon. No idea how old it is. Any thoughts?

A.alnakkas · 15th July 2017, 01:35 AM

Nice presentable example, my friend!

kahnjar1 · 15th July 2017, 02:59 AM

Hi Eytan,
Nice Marsh Dagger if I may say so. You comment regarding similarity to the Kurdish dagger is well founded, as the Kurdish is from modern day Northern Iraq and the Marsh from Southern Iraq, so regionally speaking they are quite close.
Stu

15th July 2017, 12:37 AM	#1
motan Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Jerusalem Posts: 274	South Iraqi dagger for comments Hi all, I bought this one sometime ago, but got it just yesterday. As you an see in the first pic from the auctioneer, the blade was very rusty and I had to use aggressive methods to clean it. This is so called "Marsh Arab" dagger. I have seen many pictures, but never had one in my hand. This is the most basic version (more elaborate one is shown in pic 2), but I was impressed by the quality of the materials and the workmanship. Smooth and tight finish and precise fit. In many ways, it resembles the Kurdish dagger, like the hilt made of single piece of black buffalo horn, the tooled leather scabbard and the way the blade is inserted into the hilt. However, the Kurdish dagger really looks very practical, while these have a peculiar slender shape that doest not look very much like a fighting weapon. No idea how old it is. Any thoughts? Attached Images

15th July 2017, 01:35 AM	#2
A.alnakkas Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuwait Posts: 1,340	Nice presentable example, my friend!

15th July 2017, 02:59 AM	#3
kahnjar1 Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: CHRISTCHURCH NEW ZEALAND Posts: 2,739	Hi Eytan, Nice Marsh Dagger if I may say so. You comment regarding similarity to the Kurdish dagger is well founded, as the Kurdish is from modern day Northern Iraq and the Marsh from Southern Iraq, so regionally speaking they are quite close. Stu