My Haladie

Jim McDougall · 16th June 2010, 04:39 AM

Hi Sailorjohn,
I saw this interesting haladie posted elsewhere, and Im really glad you posted it here!! Welcome to our forum.
While awaiting posting the pictures, I will say that while the haladie is indeed found in Syria and in the Sudan, it is actually a weapon that appears to have come out of India and known to have been used by Rajputs.

In Stone, he does refer to this as 'the Syrian knife' but the weapon seems to have come from the madu madu of India, once made of a pair of buffalo horns and eventually using steel blades made following that shape.

The boldly etched 'thuluth' calligraphy on the blades of your example suggest that it is from the Sudan, where these and many edged weapons were decorated in this way from the Mahdist period and somewhat in the years to follow.

Let me know if I can help with pictures, send me a PM.

All the best,
Jim

16th June 2010, 04:39 AM	#3
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,284	Hi Sailorjohn, I saw this interesting haladie posted elsewhere, and Im really glad you posted it here!! Welcome to our forum. While awaiting posting the pictures, I will say that while the haladie is indeed found in Syria and in the Sudan, it is actually a weapon that appears to have come out of India and known to have been used by Rajputs. In Stone, he does refer to this as 'the Syrian knife' but the weapon seems to have come from the madu madu of India, once made of a pair of buffalo horns and eventually using steel blades made following that shape. The boldly etched 'thuluth' calligraphy on the blades of your example suggest that it is from the Sudan, where these and many edged weapons were decorated in this way from the Mahdist period and somewhat in the years to follow. Let me know if I can help with pictures, send me a PM. All the best, Jim