"Black Sea" Yataghan (sword)
Datelate 1800s
Mediumetched steel (recycled bayonet blade) with brass and horn
Dimensions62 × 47.5 × 16 cm (24 7/16 × 18 11/16 × 6 5/16 in.), 1 lb, 2 oz (weight)
ClassificationsArms and Armor
Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection
Object number2014.98
DescriptionIron etched to resemble crucible steel or pattern-welded steel.Label TextThis sword is made from a recycled bayonet blade, gorgeously reshaped and refitted to become a work of sculpture. The graceful recurve and eared grip are strikingly suggestive of the eared daggers of ancient Iran and the khopesh of pharaonic Egypt, and the blade has been elaborately etched to suggest the surface of Damascus steel.ProvenanceMilton R. MacIntosh collection (Cranston, RI) (#306); purchased by the Museum in December 1970 Collection transfer from Higgins Armory, January 2014.
On View
Not on viewCollections
late 1800s
dated 1795-1796; original manufacture possibly 1600s
Desiderius Helmschmid
about 1552
