Omani Kattara for dicussion

[TVV]

Saqr, thanks a lot for your comments. I cannot really see inside the scabbard, but the hilt is constructed of two pieces of wood, with leather lining between them and the tang, and then bound together with wire, over which the leather has been stretched and sewn with a seam on the back. I have no doubt that the cover leather is quite new, and as for the wood, it looks old and patinated, so it might be the original hilt with new leather.
Do you know (or perhaps you wonder just as I do, looking at your thread about Omani seifs), when was the switch in preferences made from broadswords to sabre blades? And why did Omanis import sabre blades all the way from Central Europe, instead of Persia or India for example?

[ariel]

As far as I know, quite a lot of the curved ones are Indian. Elgood mentions that in the second half of the 19th century there was a massive influx of Caucasian shashka blades. I wonder whether "European" incisions are in fact Caucasian .

[S.Al-Anizi]

The change from broadswords to sabres in arab swords began in the 14th century. Although that didnt seem to affect Oman and Yemen, which only began to switch in the late 18th century.

[S.Al-Anizi]

Originally Posted by ariel

As far as I know, quite a lot of the curved ones are Indian. Elgood mentions that in the second half of the 19th century there was a massive influx of Caucasian shashka blades. I wonder whether "European" incisions are in fact Caucasian .

Ariel,

Elgood says, and I totally agree with him, that most curved blades on Kaskara's were caucasian imports.

EDIT: Where did I get kaskara's from, probably from lack of sleep. I meant kattara's.