Ruined bichaq/yataghan

TVV · 28th June 2007, 05:42 PM

I hate to pop in into every thread and identify things as Balkan, but I am afraid I will have to do it again, as it looks to me like this could be a blade from a karakulak, or shepherd's knife from the late 19th/eraly 20th century from, here I go again, the Balkans. These are characterized by shorter yataghan-like blades and simple, unadorned hilts and scabbards. They are still relatively cheap and easy to find, especially compared to yataghans, and it is easy for someone to buy such knives, strip them from their hilts and then offer only the blades on eBay as early Ottoman yataghans, or even Greek mahairas in some cases. Here is a picture of what it may have looked like:

As far as the restoration is concerned, I personally would not go as far as putting ivory scales, as horn ones would be sufficient and perhaps more accurate. Scabbards were made of two pieces of wood, covered in leather and held with a bracelet or two, nothing fancy.

28th June 2007, 05:42 PM	#2
TVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 1,664	I hate to pop in into every thread and identify things as Balkan, but I am afraid I will have to do it again, as it looks to me like this could be a blade from a karakulak, or shepherd's knife from the late 19th/eraly 20th century from, here I go again, the Balkans. These are characterized by shorter yataghan-like blades and simple, unadorned hilts and scabbards. They are still relatively cheap and easy to find, especially compared to yataghans, and it is easy for someone to buy such knives, strip them from their hilts and then offer only the blades on eBay as early Ottoman yataghans, or even Greek mahairas in some cases. Here is a picture of what it may have looked like: As far as the restoration is concerned, I personally would not go as far as putting ivory scales, as horn ones would be sufficient and perhaps more accurate. Scabbards were made of two pieces of wood, covered in leather and held with a bracelet or two, nothing fancy.