Superb quality antique late 18th century silver-mounted Turkish Ottoman (possibly Balkan) Islamic sword Shamshir with exceptionally well made curved sturdy single-edged blade, hand-forged of Damascus steel wootz with a fine sham pattern.
The entire mountings, including grip, crossguard, and the scabbard with two large suspension mounts, are made of solid silver.

Entirely worked in repousse and are finely hand chased in low relief with scrolling foliage of rococo shells and flowers in typical Ottoman Rococo pattern.

Featuring a mixture of European and Islamic ornamentation that can be seen in 18th-century Ottoman art, including metalwork (silver), tombak, and woodwork (turban stands (kavukluk) and furniture).

Like swords in most cultures, the Islamic swords were worn as both weapons and status symbols. The man for whom this splendid sword was made must undoubtedly have been a somewhat important figure in the Ottoman society since he had a sword of such high quality and very expensive at the time.

This is a stunning museum-quality Islamic Ottoman sword, a real artwork, and an important example of Muslim goldsmith and swordsmiths art.

MEASUREMENTS:
Overall length with the scabbard: 89 cm (35.4 inches)
Overall length without scabbard: 81.5 cm (32.09 inches)
Width of the blade at the widest point: 3.3 cm (1.3 inches)
The thickness of the blade spine: 6 mm (0.29 inches).
Width of the scabbard at the widest point: 5.1 cm (2.01 inches)

Total weight of the sword with scabbard: 1.319 kg (2.9079 lb.)

Weight of the scabbard: 589 grams (1.299 lb.)


CONDITION: with signs of age and usage, the solid silver scabbard with some dents is common in these types made of silver scabbards (silver is a softer metal than steel or brass).
In good condition for an antique sword that is approximately 200 years old.

REFERENCES:
It is a rare museum-quality sword that can be found in exhibitions in museums.

Similar shamshir from the collection of the world's leading museums, The Royal Armoury (Swedish: Livrustkammaren) at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden is published in the book A Study of the Eastern Sword by Kirill Rivkin and Brian Isaac. Page. 240.figure 135.

We will provide the buyer with photocopies of the pages from the mentioned references together with a certificate of authenticity

PROVENANCE: Acquired from an old Canadian Collection of Islamic Art, including Muslim arms and armor.

Item number: ES1033

All items are guaranteed to be authentic antiques, and not reproductions.

All our artifacts are accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity.

We provide a full money return guarantee if a state museum judges the

artifact to be non-authentic.

Canadian buyers please note: We are required to charge HST or GST on all orders mailed to Canadian

destinations. The invoice we send to Canadian buyers will include the appropriate tax.

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