Is this a Black Sea Yatagan?

[ariel]

Years ago , before it was established that those curious contraptions with fancifully curved blades and sharp horns for a pommel were coming from Lazistan, there were passionate arguments about their origin.

There were those who called them Egyptian, because the form of the blade was a dead ringer of an ancient Egyptian khopesh.


Anthony Tirri maintained that they were Algerean, based on some features similar to flissa: very thin heedless-like point and semicircular or slanted heel of the blade.

And there were some who paid attention to the black and green leather ribbons seen on some Sudanese/ Somali daggers.

All these theories went the way of Dodo with the publication of photographs from Lazistan.


Laz Bichaqs are easily recognized, with no similar examples known to man and beast.

But let me agree with Osobist: let us assume that with a lot of imagination one can find some features on the Sphenoid’s yataghan that do resemble some features of Laz Bichaq. IMHO, no matter what, it does not and will not allow us to classify it as true LB.

Weapons tend to borrow or inherently have some similarities with foreign examples. Some Tulwars have prominent false edges, but they are not Ottoman kilijes. Guardless Bukhara sabers are not Caucasian shashkas.

And the weapon presented here is a yataghan, but not a Laz Bichaq, aka Black Sea Yataghan