An example of superior quality with bone grip with black horn accent, the tangbands and bolster forged of fine wootz steel. The sharp single-edged blade with finely-chiseled spine forged of Persian Kara Taban (Brilliant Black) wootz steel, retaining its original lustre. In its original ornate scabbard with superbly pierced, embossed and engraved silver mounts, together with a crocodile band. Measures 9 1/2" long. A kard is defined as a straight, single-edged dagger that is worn on the left side of the belt, found in Turkey, Armenia, Persia, and all the way to India. Mostly used in the 18th century and before, it has a straight single edged blade. It has no guard, and usually the handle was bone, ivory, or horn. It was mostly a stabbing weapon, and commonly the point would be reinforced to penetrate chain mail. A major characteristic of a kard is that the hilt is only partially covered by the sheath. Provenance: Charleston SC Private Collection

9 1/2" x1"x1". Wt. 7 oz