Dagger (khanjarli) of steel, gold, silver, elephant ivory and rubies with sheath of wood, textile and silver
India; first half of the 18th century
L (dagger): 34.5; L (total): 37.8 cm
Inventory number 16a/2022 & 16b/2022
The khanjarli is a special type of Indian dagger with a distinctive recurved blade and broad lunette pommel. The type can be traced back to the first half of the eighteenth century, but its exact origins are unknown.1 Some scholars attribute it to the Marathas – a Hindu people who ruled large parts of central India during this period.2
On this dagger, the grip and pommel are made of four plates of polished elephant ivory held in place by four rivets with ruby-inlaid gold rosettes. The knuckle guard and cross guard are both decorated with fine plant ornaments in inlaid gold, which continue partway down the blade.
Khanjarli daggers often refer to the elephant, an animal which Indian princes used for both war and hunting. On this dagger, the handle references the majestic animal by virtue of its material, and furthermore the blade is flanked by two gilded elephant heads. The knuckle guard, however, depicts another of India’s most iconic animals, terminating in a golden tiger head.
The combination of these two animals may reflect the fact that hunting tigers from the back of elephants was a popular royal pastime, making it a worthy theme for a richly decorated weapon such as this.3
On this dagger, the grip and pommel are made of four plates of polished elephant ivory held in place by four rivets with ruby-inlaid gold rosettes. The knuckle guard and cross guard are both decorated with fine plant ornaments in inlaid gold, which continue partway down the blade.
Khanjarli daggers often refer to the elephant, an animal which Indian princes used for both war and hunting. On this dagger, the handle references the majestic animal by virtue of its material, and furthermore the blade is flanked by two gilded elephant heads. The knuckle guard, however, depicts another of India’s most iconic animals, terminating in a golden tiger head.
The combination of these two animals may reflect the fact that hunting tigers from the back of elephants was a popular royal pastime, making it a worthy theme for a richly decorated weapon such as this.3
Published in
Published in
Davids Samling: Islamiske våben i dansk privateje = Islamic arms and armour from private Danish collections, Davids Samling, København 1982, cat.no. 123, pp. 160-161;
Kjeld von Folsach, Joachim Meyer and Peter Wandel: Fighting, Hunting, Impressing Arms and Armour from the Islamic World 1500–1850, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2021, cat.no. 96, p. 206 ;
Kjeld von Folsach, Joachim Meyer and Peter Wandel: Fighting, Hunting, Impressing Arms and Armour from the Islamic World 1500–1850, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2021, cat.no. 96, p. 206 ;
Footnotes
Footnotes
1.
Kjeld von Folsach, Joachim Meyer and Peter Wandel: Fighting, Hunting, Impressing Arms and Armour from the Islamic World 1500–1850, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2021, pp. 75–76 and cat.no. 96.
2.
Robert Elgood: Hindu Arms and Ritual: Arms and Armour from India 1400-1865, Delft 2004, p. 251.
3.
Bente Dam Mikkelsen and Torben Lundbæk (eds.): Etnografiske genstande i Det kongelige danske Kunstkammer 1650-1800 = Ethnographic objects in The Royal Danish Kunstkammer, Copenhagen 1980, pp. 106–107.
Metalwork, Weapons and Jewelry
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