The Omani Khanjar

[colin henshaw]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Salaams All~ Note to Forum. The Khanjar Blade. (naslah).

This remarkable piece of engineering is around 17 or 18 cms long and 5 to 6 cms broad at the throat tapering to a point along a curved, two edged, centrally ridged on both sides, steel blade. The ridge gives strength for thrusting and withdrawing the blade. Cheap imported blades are two joined together whereas a proper Omani blade joins along the ridges. The little furnace about half the size of a football, is wood fuelled and heat is increased by use of hand bellows.
The best blades were made by a peculiar and historically virtually unrecorded group of itinerant Gypsy like folk called Zuttoot... or Zutti covered in my other post at length.See Kattara for comments #165. In days of old these small bands travelled about Oman doing tinning of utensils, making tools and sword and Khanjar blades...on commission and at random.
The blade is all important to local gentlemen and when inspecting a Khanjar they will ponder the blade first and foremost... not the scabbard or hilt. Often they take up the dagger with hilt in thumb and first 2 fingers by the very point only and lift it vertically... If they can easily lift it ... its a duffer ! If it slips from the fingers then its quality... weight, balance and blade metal quaility are observed most carefully..
According to Richardson and Dorr (The Craft Herrritage of Oman) The bedouin say that the best metal ore for blades is found in thunder storms where the lightening strikes!
One of the amazing ways in which they decide on blade quality is by tasting the blade?
Glue. To fix the blade, Lakk is used (Tachardia Lacca ) from an insect secretion. Essentially it looks like small blocks/ sheets of black pitch and is imported from India and Pakistan. The molten pitch-like lakk is poured into the hilts cuff(tuq) and the heated blade is sturdily pressed home.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Hi Ibrahiim

I decided to read through some of the Omani threads and am interested in this subject - the manufacture of khanjar blades. It has puzzled me a bit, even when I was in Oman over 40 years ago. Can you concisely advise :-

In the historic period (say pre-1950) :-

Was iron smelting for khanjar blade manufacture ever done in Oman ?
Are there iron ore deposits in Oman ?
Were the blades forged in Oman from imported or scrap iron ? (imported from where ?)
Were the blades imported ready-made ? (from where ?)

What was the position in the rest of Arabia regarding the above ? (eg. Saudi Arabia, Yemen, UAE etc) ?

What about khanjar blades in the modern period regarding the above points ?

Apologies if these issues have been covered elsewhere either in whole or in part on the forum.

Thanks in advance & regards.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by colin henshaw

Hi Ibrahiim

I decided to read through some of the Omani threads and am interested in this subject - the manufacture of khanjar blades. It has puzzled me a bit, even when I was in Oman over 40 years ago. Can you concisely advise :-

In the historic period (say pre-1950) :-

Was iron smelting for khanjar blade manufacture ever done in Oman ?
Are there iron ore deposits in Oman ?
Were the blades forged in Oman from imported or scrap iron ? (imported from where ?)
Were the blades imported ready-made ? (from where ?)

What was the position in the rest of Arabia regarding the above ? (eg. Saudi Arabia, Yemen, UAE etc) ?

What about khanjar blades in the modern period regarding the above points ?

Apologies if these issues have been covered elsewhere either in whole or in part on the forum.

Thanks in advance & regards.

Hello Colin, Iron tools were made in Nizwa on forges as well as by wandering Zutoot before 1970... Much in the same way as Gypsies did this sort of work in other parts of the world.
Most of the blades are imported ready made these days... but this is a good question as it is said that (so it probably isn't true) the best blades are locally made. I have heard tales of meteor ore being turned into such blades but I have found no evidence of it. I will find out more and post here as soon as I can.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[colin henshaw]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Hello Colin, Iron tools were made in Nizwa on forges as well as by wandering Zutoot before 1970... Much in the same way as Gypsies did this sort of work in other parts of the world.
Most of the blades are imported ready made these days... but this is a good question as it is said that (so it probably isn't true) the best blades are locally made. I have heard tales of meteor ore being turned into such blades but I have found no evidence of it. I will find out more and post here as soon as I can.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Thanks Ibrahiim, I am looking forward to reading the results of your research.

The only references I have been able to find on the internet, are from the website www.omanisilver.com. It states that older khanjar blades were from Iran or Europe. The website also quotes from the book by Franz Stuhlmann "Handwerk und Industrie in Ost Africa", 1910 that khanjar blades were sourced from Solingen.

Regards,
Colin Henshaw

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by colin henshaw

Thanks Ibrahiim, I am looking forward to reading the results of your research.

The only references I have been able to find on the internet, are from the website www.omanisilver.com. It states that older khanjar blades were from Iran or Europe. The website also quotes from the book by Franz Stuhlmann "Handwerk und Industrie in Ost Africa", 1910 that khanjar blades were sourced from Solingen.

Regards,
Colin Henshaw

Omani Silver dot com has substantially revamped their Omani Khanjar situation (which they are quite entitled to do ) and have now got a vibrant collection with well backed up references and detail. They include in the domain of Omani Khanjars those regions traded into by Saiid the Great including Eastern Saudia and South West areas that were once in Yemen but are now in Saudia.

(I disagree that Khanjars with a flower tribe makers stamp on the reverse of the scabbard are Omani...The construction of the hilt is different and of course the flower tribe makers stamp means "made by a flower tribal artisan in Yemen/Saudia" no matter what part of the Khanjar is copied into their making of it) However I fully endorse the website and reccommend it to Forum...www.omanisilver.com

I have not seen(yet) any home made blades in this regard but will continue looking. I would expect to find work by the Master of Sulayf or one of the other famous artesans but there are only imports available in living memory.


Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[A.alnakkas]

there is no flower tribe. Southern Arabs include the wearing of flowers on their heads and sometimes on their necks.

Bedouins often photographed with flowers on their heads are the bedouins of Asir and Tihama and they are not from the same tribe. Its a simple tradition that is not strict to any group.

Otherwise we'd have the egal and ghutra tribe and the turban tribe :-)

As for the daggers, since the flower tribe does not exist, the mythical dagger makers do not too.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by A.alnakkas

there is no flower tribe. Southern Arabs include the wearing of flowers on their heads and sometimes on their necks.

Bedouins often photographed with flowers on their heads are the bedouins of Asir and Tihama and they are not from the same tribe. Its a simple tradition that is not strict to any group.

Otherwise we'd have the egal and ghutra tribe and the turban tribe :-)

As for the daggers, since the flower tribe does not exist, the mythical dagger makers do not too.

Whilst respecting the strict tribal nameology and that there may not be a tribe called the Flower tribe there are many people in the region in the Asir whose livelihood is based on flowers and are famous for wearing flowers about their heads...generically called by accident or design; Flower tribe. The appearance of a Flower Tribe insignia in the form of a bunch of flowers underpins that conjecture. No identifiable insignia exists in Oman with that stamp. The stamp comes from the Asir. I would assume that Saiid The Greats involvement in the region caused by trade both ways from Muscat to Zanzibar was responsible for the transmission. These Khanjars often have names inscribed: ...Yemeni.

However, it is not that simple since http://khanjar.om/Old.html the al Wustah Omani Governate has a Khanjar that is virtually identical to the Dojanni.

[A.alnakkas]

That assuming that the "wustah" dagger is properly identified. I would have a look at the back side first and do recall wanting to contact them.

As for the stamps in the back, the most common is the palm and two swords. The flower design is not uncommon anywhere, and it is apparent on other items such as swords. The attributation of the artistic design to a certain tribe especially when it comes to this dagger simply does not follow. As it is made and worn by people of different tribes and regions.