New or old horse mughal dagger?

estcrh · 15th April 2016, 01:35 AM

More pictures may help.

AkaaliSingh · 15th April 2016, 05:59 AM

I'm leaning towards being it being vintage than antique.. Here are closer pictures as requested. Thank you for the input so far!

AkaaliSingh · 15th April 2016, 06:02 AM

blade close up

mariusgmioc · 15th April 2016, 07:58 AM

Thank you for the photos!

I would say 20th century. More exactly, is hard to say.

What I can say for sure is that it is a very beautiful Mughal dagger I would love to have in my collection.

PS: The gems appear to be genuine coral, turquoise and lapis lazuli.

Battara · 16th April 2016, 02:21 AM

I agree with Mariusgmioc. The koftgari and metal workmanship is more 20thc (easier to see now that you posted close ups - thank you).

Although the pattern welded blade goes back to early Mughal times, they still make these in India today. Most of the pattern welds are of the "bird's eye" form and have a higher contrast, I have also seen some here in the US that are of the lower contrast and earlier style. So the blade could be an older blade married to a newer hilt, or a recently made higher grade blade (based on what I can see in the pictures).

15th April 2016, 01:35 AM	#1
estcrh Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: USA Posts: 1,497	More pictures may help. Attached Images

15th April 2016, 05:59 AM	#2
AkaaliSingh Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 31	I'm leaning towards being it being vintage than antique.. Here are closer pictures as requested. Thank you for the input so far! Attached Images

15th April 2016, 06:02 AM	#3
AkaaliSingh Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 31	blade close up Attached Images

15th April 2016, 07:58 AM	#4
mariusgmioc Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Austria Posts: 1,903	Thank you for the photos! I would say 20th century. More exactly, is hard to say. What I can say for sure is that it is a very beautiful Mughal dagger I would love to have in my collection. PS: The gems appear to be genuine coral, turquoise and lapis lazuli.

16th April 2016, 02:21 AM	#5
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,221	I agree with Mariusgmioc. The koftgari and metal workmanship is more 20thc (easier to see now that you posted close ups - thank you). Although the pattern welded blade goes back to early Mughal times, they still make these in India today. Most of the pattern welds are of the "bird's eye" form and have a higher contrast, I have also seen some here in the US that are of the lower contrast and earlier style. So the blade could be an older blade married to a newer hilt, or a recently made higher grade blade (based on what I can see in the pictures).