Dagger from India?

[ariel]

Agree with A. alnakkas: just “ Lebanese Dagger”:-) Although one can legitimately call it "Jezzine dagger".


Majal Shams is a Druze village at the Golan Heights. It has its own style of daggers that is unmistakably characteristic: spool-like handle made of multicolored stacked elements. Due to its souvenir popularity and the fact that Golan Heights are currently in Israel similar daggers are now manufactured in other places in Syria and Lebanon.

Lebanese style largely stems from Maronite Christian workshop in Jezzine, established by Haddad family some 250 years ago. Haddad work became so famous that it earned an article in the National Geographic in 1958. Older examples carry handles similar to the one shown here. Its currently most popular style has a Phoenix-like handle mostly used for expensive cutlery sets. I suspect that by now other workshops are imitating Haddad knives.

These two styles are very distinct and should not be used in one sentence. The only common feature is a curved blade.

Here are pics: older style Jezzine dagger, current most popular Haddad knives and Majal Shams Druze dagger.