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All-Steel Katar

Place of Origin: BUNDI, RAJASTHAN

Date: 18th Century

Overall Length: 450mm

Reference: 221

Status: Sold

Full Description:

With a fine level of polish, this katar’s clean, confident lines show off the original owner’s refined tastes. The blade is wide and double-edged, and has a shallow, flat fuller that is bisected by a central line of intricately feathered pinnate leaves that gradually reduce in size until they vanish into the weapon’s thick tip. This is sometimes referred to as a ‘tree of life’ and is usually associated with the cypress—a symbol of immortality that coincides with the Rajput wish for a glorious death in battle. The blade has extra ornamentation in the form of two beaded bridges that connect with these leaves while nearby a superbly sculpted anthemion-type motif draws the eye to the connection with the hilt. More leaves can be found draped over this connection—an elegantly recurved steel bar holding the blade firmly.

The two grip-bars are square in section and linked by symmetrical ‘C scrolls’, additions that are typical of the katars historically produced in Bundi in the Indian state of Rajasthan[1].

For reference, a similar katar can be seen in A Passion for Indian Arms by Jens Nordlunde[2].

 

[1] T. H. Hendley, Ulwar and its Art Treasures, 1888, plate XL.

[2] J. Nordlunde, A Passion for Indian Arms, 2016, p.113.

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