Omani Saifs...

Rivkin · 10th September 2006, 11:03 PM

What puzzles me in qattaras, in particular in straight ones is how many of the blades actually look western european. Take for example Caucasus or India - in both we have a huge influx of western made trade blades that actually look 100% western (hussar, venitian gurda, smallsword, rapier) with very few exceptions of special order swords. What follows is that locals start to rip off western trademark, deforming it in the process until it barely recognized, or not recognized at all.
With straight Omani kattaras we have a different story - the sword is very different from anything western past I would say 16th century, yet we see the blades that can quite clearly be dated to the 17th or even 19th centuries, in addition bearing perfectly recognizable and well done wolfs, stars and moons, I mean we see a few obvious local (or indian, persian ?") rip-offs here and there, but the majority of swords still has quite western looking symbolics.

If these are all locally made, while the wolf is by far less deformed than in Caucasus? Why we see so many moon and stars, wolfs, hands with swords, most of them with such a good quality of engraving? If these would be locally made we would expect a slightly broader distribution of skills and styles? And why they would emulate western swords, if at least at some time they were not buying such swords in masses? But then, if these blades are western, why go to such difficulties producing swords specifically for Oman? Or could it be that some of these swords are actually very old western swords, but then again - most of kattaras are somewhat thinner than a typical medieval western sword with a much more "roundish" point. But yet again one can try to blame it on extensive use.

Michael Blalock · 11th September 2006, 12:09 AM

When you consider that since 1503 Oman was the hub of world trade with Portuguese colonies on the east coast of Africa. Persian colonies since the 1100's and Indian traders since ancient times it is no wonder a very different style of sword developed from rest of the Arabian Peninsula. Good European blades must have been used as payment for slaves, which was the primary business of Omani traders.

S.Al-Anizi · 11th September 2006, 12:51 AM

Well I personally believe that most, something like 80% of Omani straight kattaras, have locally produced blades. However, with most sabre kattaras, they have imported trade blades, more than 90% of them. As you say, the mark of the running wolf of solingen, has been so altered, that the original one is unrecognisable anymore.

Clearly, the kattara is a unique sword, with its blade characterstics, the finess, the rounded tip, and also with the unguarded hilt, but thats not the sword Im talking about here, Im talking about the one i provided I picture above in my first post.

I really cannot answer your question regarding why the wolf mark is much better copied than in the caucasus, but it seems to be a fact. All the saifs and sabre kattaras with engravings such as moons, stars, and sword weilding arms are undeniably german, hungarian, or caucasian blades, but still, some local smiths, presumably in mecca or ha'il, did copy those marks, as a sign of quality, and some were skilled and copied them well. The reason why people not from the region do not see so many saifs or kattara's with locally made blades is not that they're of bad quality, the reason is purely commercial in my opinion, western antiques dealers buy swords with valuable persian wootz blades, and sell them in the west, establishing the fact that most arabian swords had such blades, which is wrong. The common bedouin, carried a straight saif, with a locally made blade made somewhere in one of the many towns in arabia. Those that are well off would hope to buy one with a european blade, or with a blade made in Ha'il, where swordsmithing was quite advanced in arabia. Only wealthy emirs or tribal sheikhs could afford a wootz blade. Most saifs Ive seen, and ive seen MANY, whether in damascus, riyadh, kuwait, have locally produced blades, next comes those with european blades, which became common in the early 19th century, and least came persian wootz blades, which were of high quality, only uncommon because of their price.

As to the idea of kattara blades being thinner and lighter than western broadswords, I think the answer to that lies in looking at portugese sword blades of the 15th-16th centuries. You know, Omani's had a long war with the portugese, and suceeding in defeating them and driving them back to central africa. They must have captured ALOT of blades, old and new, some obsolete designs, and these must have surfaced in the smithies of Muscat, where they were hilted, and used, and resharpened alot, until they reached a point of being very thin and whippy. Ofcourse this is only speculation, because all kattara blades, from 16th to the 20th centuries are thin and whippy, so they would have been naturally made so.

10th September 2006, 11:03 PM	#1
Rivkin Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 655	What puzzles me in qattaras, in particular in straight ones is how many of the blades actually look western european. Take for example Caucasus or India - in both we have a huge influx of western made trade blades that actually look 100% western (hussar, venitian gurda, smallsword, rapier) with very few exceptions of special order swords. What follows is that locals start to rip off western trademark, deforming it in the process until it barely recognized, or not recognized at all. With straight Omani kattaras we have a different story - the sword is very different from anything western past I would say 16th century, yet we see the blades that can quite clearly be dated to the 17th or even 19th centuries, in addition bearing perfectly recognizable and well done wolfs, stars and moons, I mean we see a few obvious local (or indian, persian ?") rip-offs here and there, but the majority of swords still has quite western looking symbolics. If these are all locally made, while the wolf is by far less deformed than in Caucasus? Why we see so many moon and stars, wolfs, hands with swords, most of them with such a good quality of engraving? If these would be locally made we would expect a slightly broader distribution of skills and styles? And why they would emulate western swords, if at least at some time they were not buying such swords in masses? But then, if these blades are western, why go to such difficulties producing swords specifically for Oman? Or could it be that some of these swords are actually very old western swords, but then again - most of kattaras are somewhat thinner than a typical medieval western sword with a much more "roundish" point. But yet again one can try to blame it on extensive use.

11th September 2006, 12:09 AM	#2
Michael Blalock Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: dc Posts: 271	When you consider that since 1503 Oman was the hub of world trade with Portuguese colonies on the east coast of Africa. Persian colonies since the 1100's and Indian traders since ancient times it is no wonder a very different style of sword developed from rest of the Arabian Peninsula. Good European blades must have been used as payment for slaves, which was the primary business of Omani traders.

11th September 2006, 12:51 AM	#3
S.Al-Anizi Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Arabia Posts: 278	Well I personally believe that most, something like 80% of Omani straight kattaras, have locally produced blades. However, with most sabre kattaras, they have imported trade blades, more than 90% of them. As you say, the mark of the running wolf of solingen, has been so altered, that the original one is unrecognisable anymore. Clearly, the kattara is a unique sword, with its blade characterstics, the finess, the rounded tip, and also with the unguarded hilt, but thats not the sword Im talking about here, Im talking about the one i provided I picture above in my first post. I really cannot answer your question regarding why the wolf mark is much better copied than in the caucasus, but it seems to be a fact. All the saifs and sabre kattaras with engravings such as moons, stars, and sword weilding arms are undeniably german, hungarian, or caucasian blades, but still, some local smiths, presumably in mecca or ha'il, did copy those marks, as a sign of quality, and some were skilled and copied them well. The reason why people not from the region do not see so many saifs or kattara's with locally made blades is not that they're of bad quality, the reason is purely commercial in my opinion, western antiques dealers buy swords with valuable persian wootz blades, and sell them in the west, establishing the fact that most arabian swords had such blades, which is wrong. The common bedouin, carried a straight saif, with a locally made blade made somewhere in one of the many towns in arabia. Those that are well off would hope to buy one with a european blade, or with a blade made in Ha'il, where swordsmithing was quite advanced in arabia. Only wealthy emirs or tribal sheikhs could afford a wootz blade. Most saifs Ive seen, and ive seen MANY, whether in damascus, riyadh, kuwait, have locally produced blades, next comes those with european blades, which became common in the early 19th century, and least came persian wootz blades, which were of high quality, only uncommon because of their price. As to the idea of kattara blades being thinner and lighter than western broadswords, I think the answer to that lies in looking at portugese sword blades of the 15th-16th centuries. You know, Omani's had a long war with the portugese, and suceeding in defeating them and driving them back to central africa. They must have captured ALOT of blades, old and new, some obsolete designs, and these must have surfaced in the smithies of Muscat, where they were hilted, and used, and resharpened alot, until they reached a point of being very thin and whippy. Ofcourse this is only speculation, because all kattara blades, from 16th to the 20th centuries are thin and whippy, so they would have been naturally made so.