Kindjal, filigreed sheath.

mariusgmioc · 25th June 2019, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ariel

Yours are decent, with maker's marks, inscriptions, niello, gilding. Those were not mentioned, and I had something else in mind:-)
Eventually, we need to see the pics.

Yep. Quite different classes of workmanship.

PS: I only own the first one. The second one is not mine.
The two triple fullered larger ones in your example appear to be Daghestani or from Vladikavkaz... And I also have serious doubts about the Georgian origin of the "tourist" piece.

ariel · 26th June 2019, 12:22 AM

Modern souvenir makers adhere to no particular “style”. Flashy, generic, easy to make. Over there profit of $20 is a respectable sum.
There are some higher class sellers, pushing elaborate fantasies, sometimes even with old blades. Be attentive, careful and paranoid!

mariusgmioc · 26th June 2019, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ariel

Modern souvenir makers adhere to no particular “style”. Flashy, generic, easy to make. Over there profit of $20 is a respectable sum.
There are some higher class sellers, pushing elaborate fantasies, sometimes even with old blades. Be attentive, careful and paranoid!

Yep, fully agree! You can never be careful enough!

corrado26 · 26th June 2019, 11:48 AM

Nice to see my Qama once again

corrado26

mariusgmioc · 26th June 2019, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by corrado26

Nice to see my Qama once again

corrado26

Was it yours?! It is an excellent piece!
Well, thank you for selling it and making me happy!

rockelk · 30th June 2019, 05:44 AM

New arrival, I have now in possession my shot in the dark. Only the blade is magnetic. There are light scratches on the back and I can see no copper underneath the scratch. I will have to get some dilute nitric to determine if it could be nickel silver. To me this is very nice filigree, but I would appreciate those with more experience to comment. Could this be black niello in the background with the silver polished? Has anyone seen a sheath done in this fashion? The blade has three fullers on the front and two on the back. I took a number of pictures. I hope I did not overdo it.

ariel · 30th June 2019, 01:34 PM

Thanks for the pics. Now we can stop guessing and see the reality.

Yours is a very modern one, being better than my ugly examples but infinitely worse than those presented by Marius. There is a wide variety of souvenirs, and yours is in the upper half of it: more careful filigree, better blade. But still, it has only tentative connection to the great Caucasian tradition.

One can deliberately collect recent imitations of anything: Chinese fakes of Rembrandt’s oils available in several sizes, Indian daggers with “ bird’s eye” mechanical Damascus and camel bone mosaic handles, stainless steel Turkish Zulfikars, plastic Egyptian scarabs etc. There are as many collections as there are collectors.

But the question “Why? What for?” never leaves my mind. There are inexpensive old kindjals on the market with a paipable aura of history and distinct ethnic styles. Why not acquire one of those instead?

But at the end of the day it is your decision.

30th June 2019, 05:44 AM	#6
rockelk Member Join Date: May 2019 Location: Arizona Posts: 42	Home with new arrival New arrival, I have now in possession my shot in the dark. Only the blade is magnetic. There are light scratches on the back and I can see no copper underneath the scratch. I will have to get some dilute nitric to determine if it could be nickel silver. To me this is very nice filigree, but I would appreciate those with more experience to comment. Could this be black niello in the background with the silver polished? Has anyone seen a sheath done in this fashion? The blade has three fullers on the front and two on the back. I took a number of pictures. I hope I did not overdo it. Attached Images

26th June 2019, 12:22 AM	#2
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Modern souvenir makers adhere to no particular “style”. Flashy, generic, easy to make. Over there profit of $20 is a respectable sum. There are some higher class sellers, pushing elaborate fantasies, sometimes even with old blades. Be attentive, careful and paranoid!

26th June 2019, 11:48 AM	#4
corrado26 Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Black Forest, Germany Posts: 1,226	Nice to see my Qama once again corrado26

30th June 2019, 01:34 PM	#7
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Thanks for the pics. Now we can stop guessing and see the reality. Yours is a very modern one, being better than my ugly examples but infinitely worse than those presented by Marius. There is a wide variety of souvenirs, and yours is in the upper half of it: more careful filigree, better blade. But still, it has only tentative connection to the great Caucasian tradition. One can deliberately collect recent imitations of anything: Chinese fakes of Rembrandt’s oils available in several sizes, Indian daggers with “ bird’s eye” mechanical Damascus and camel bone mosaic handles, stainless steel Turkish Zulfikars, plastic Egyptian scarabs etc. There are as many collections as there are collectors. But the question “Why? What for?” never leaves my mind. There are inexpensive old kindjals on the market with a paipable aura of history and distinct ethnic styles. Why not acquire one of those instead? But at the end of the day it is your decision.