Some Jambiyas

[Gavin Nugent]

Thanks Lou, I hope you are happy with your Nimcha!

As you have had a fair bit of imput on these over the years, are there any particular links or readings that you can offer up on learning further about the subject with regards to dating and origins other than Oriental arms? Would you per chance have specific comparisons in your collection? The decorative nature of these items is always interesting to me.

Gav

[Lew]

Originally Posted by freebooter

Thanks Lou, I hope you are happy with your Nimcha!

As you have had a fair bit of imput on these over the years, are there any particular links or readings that you can offer up on learning further about the subject with regards to dating and origins other than Oriental arms? Would you per chance have specific comparisons in your collection? The decorative nature of these items is always interesting to me.

Gav

Hi Gav

Yes the nimcha arrived a few days ago thanks As far as these Omani jambiyas are concerned I do not have any examples in my collection but I remember reading that they were originally designed by a princess or wife of one of the kings of Oman many years ago?

The story goes that the Persian queen of Oman, the loyal loving Persian wife of Al Bu Said Sayydi Ibn Sultan who reigned Oman in 1806-1856, thought that the classical Omani Khanjar, with the rather simple I shaped handles was boring, and designed a new and more flashy khanjar dagger for her husband's birthday. The new style rapidly became very popular and its use was spread all over the Arabian peninsula.


Lew

[kahnjar1]

F Y I these 2 are from the United Arab Emirates and not Oman. Could be late 19th century but more likely early to mid 20th century. They are not anything out of the ordinary, and follow the general pattern for Khanjars from that area.
The Al bu Said Khanjar to which Lew refers is an entirely different shape, and although probably fairly hard to get in the gold presentation model, is relatively common in the standard silver. I have attached a couple of pics reproduced from a book showing the Al bu Said type. You will note that quite a number of these appear in the pic of the Omani Khanjars.
Regards Stuart

[Lew]

Stuart

I hate to split hairs with you but Before 1971, the UAE were known as the Trucial States or Trucial Oman, in reference to a nineteenth-century truce between Britain and several Arab Sheikhs. Since the UAE is just to the north of Oman these could be a northern variation of an Omani khanjar? The lines are a bit blurred here I think when speaking of the two styles. Below are several styles of Omani khanjar/jambiya as you can there are a few variations. The last photo is of T.E. Lawerence and he is wearing what looks an Omani style Jambiya of an older style so maybe styles change over time and region? At the bottom is another photo of Lawrence taken in Jidda or Jedda Saudi Arabia wearing another Omani Jamiya/khanjar so I guess that style did get around quite a bit back then.

Lew

[kahnjar1]

Hi Lew,
Yes your points are well taken re Oman/Trucial States. The boundaries are rather clouded, but the HILT styles tell the story. The particular hilts styles on Gavins Khanjar are originally from the (modern) UAE area or Arabia.
With reference to your pics, the second one is an Al bu Said hilt, and the 3rd one is a Meccan Style hilt but with an Omani style scabbard.
Re the 2 pics of T E Lawrence---in the left pic he is wearing a Khanjar with a MECCAN style hilt, and in the righthand one, an Al bu Said hilt. According to popular belief he had a preference for Meccan style Khanjar, and in fact had a gold Khanjar made for him in Mecca in 1917. This particular Khanjar is now in a private collection.
It must be remembered that prior to WW 1 (1914), Arabia was very much unknown, and the only contact was with traders and trading on the coasts. Various tribes tended to be rather fixed in their areas and it was only when someone elses style of Khanjar found its way to a new area, that the mix of styles found today began. Its an interesting and at times frustrating task to clearly identify exactly where each style comes from.

[Lew]

Stuart

We need to start working on that time machine so we can go back and figure this out Funny I have never seen a jambiya/khanjar that was say from the 17th or 18th centuries I wonder if there are any examples out there lurking about?

Lew

[Lew]

Hey this guy has one in his shop in Yemen


Knife-seller Abdullah al Azeri shows off a 300-year-old jambiya dagger that he says is worth more than $25,000. Azeri says his family has been in the knife business for more than 1,000 years.