Tulwar questions.
 

Greetings esteemed company!
Am brand new here, only 'found' this site yesterday, like it very much, and have a question or two;

I am interested in aquiring a Tulwar, not a very expensive one, but not a tourist thing! .....more of a "has been" rather than a 'never was'!

Could anyone point me in the right direction re. how to date those seen for sale at various locations ie, blade shape in different periods, or the hallmarks of what may be better, or worse.
I know a blade showing figure is a give-away, but the overall shape of hilt & blade appears to my untutored eye to have remained the same for a long time.
Are those with wide, shallow fullers or wide shallow double fullers usually European blades? if so, how do they compare with middle class native blades?
Ideally, I would like one that requires work, as I believe I could learn a lot more this way!
Please forgive the lengthy first post, and thank you!

Richard.

Hi Richard, and welcome to the forum:).

To collect Indian weapons is a difficult, but also a very interesting thing.

Before you start buying, you should read a lot about the Indian history, and you will realise that there have been a lot of wars, which of course means, that a lot of looted weapons have been transported from one place to another. You will find weapons from Deccan in armouries in the north, and weapons from the east in armouries in the west and so on. This, and the fact, that the same type of weapons has been made over centuries, makes it very difficult to put a certain date on a sword, and even more so, if it is not decorated. This and the fact that many tulwars were rehilted to follow the fashion, makes it even more difficult.

My best suggestion is, read a lot of books on the subject, but be aware, that not everything written it true. See as many collections as possible, and compare what you see with what you read, and you will slowly get a feeling about the tulwars. Don't forget to use the 'Search' button here on the forum. Good luck:).

Hi Richard,
I would like to welcome you to the forum as well! and its great to see interest in the weapons of India developing. As you can see by reading recent threads, there is a lot of interest, especially in tulwars, which are by far the most available weapons from India.

Jens has presented absolutely the most constructive advice, and I wholeheartedly agree with him! Learn to use the 'search' feature a great deal, as there have been countless discussions on these weapons here over the years.

It is probably best to go through reputable dealers in acquiring first weapons (contact me via PM and I can discuss), and as Jens has noted, visit museums if you have access. To identify Indian weapons specifically to certain region , especially tulwars, is extremely difficult, and as you have already noted, more likely to identify the period by the form of the sword components.

Read through the threads archived and make lots of notes! :) We look forward to your questions! Be as specific as you can and just focus on a feature on a specific weapon at a time. Around here we all learn together, and we never stop learning!!! :) Thats why we're here.

All the best,
Jim

Tulwar question
 

Thank you for the warm welcome, Jens and Jim,
I will take your advice, and use 'search'.
Have a book hopefully on it's way that may help!

May I ask wether fullers in a blade are a sign of quality?
I ask, because quite a few with decorated hilts appear to have plain blades.

I won't ask more right now, instead go to 'search'!

Can remember when I was a young teenager back in England in the late 60's, Tulwars were advertised, with gold or silver decorated hilts for three pounds ten shillings!!!

If you find a piece you are after, PM or email any of us, and we'll happily if we can.
There are not many fakes of 'munition grade' swords, as they are relatively cheap to buy anyway, but fakes do exist so best not to buy blind

Hi Richard,

Yes, in the 60’ies and 70’ies, London was good place for collectors:).

The fullers were made to lessen the weight of the blade, without making the blade weaker.

Tulwar Question
 

Thank you for your kind offer, BI,

........and thank you Jens for your answer.
now,........back to archives!