They are deceptively simple looking, yet quite menacing weapons. Their emphasis on a very sharp edge with a t-section reinforcement make for a good use of lower grade steel.
Semont Mentos Seriously, you don't want to do that. If you lose your grip on something like that. The last thing you want is for that thing to be jerking an dancing about on the end of your wrist.
The loop is not there so that u can strap it to your wrist. It’s actually for decoration. They use it to hang small jingle like things called “zoondai” or “Joonday” in the Pashto language. We afghans decorate everything with it from curtains to vehicles to clothes lol
I think you need some Afghan input. Although I am not into weapons but I do know something. The big knife you show is from south of Afghanistan. the small part at the end is to put your mark on it (usually some jewelry or cotton ball fastened with silk), usually the method of fight was to cut (especially the neck). A heavy armor (A Can :) ) was a disadvantage in mountain and hot desert so less need to pierce it :). However in north of Afghanistan especially northeast and north west people were using Persian and Arabic weapon. As they were Aryans the same as Iran people (Oldest tribes living in this area). Pish Qabz is a Persian word meaning (front holder) which was put in front of belt (the same that Arabs do), Also Kard (Knife) is a Persian word. We have something called (Silaba or Siraba) which is mainly made in Charikar in north of Kabul, and it is hard enough to cut the khyber knives. We had also, shamshir, khanjar (Dagger), Zobin, orz, Chaqoo, Tabarzin, etc as medieval weapons. But also Indian weapons were common. An Afghan worrier should have very strong fingers that hold the handle so tight that the hand should never move towards the blade and when you don't pierce then no need to have a hand protector, because usually your hand will not slide towards the blade if you only slash (I think).
Wtf? All Afghans like the Pashtuns are Aryans from north to south, Iran is not really Aryan genetically, they are more related to middle easterners. However these are modern weapons and ancient ones looked much different. The long sword is beleived to have originated around Afghansitan and was the original weapon there before it was repalced.
This is a really cool video. I've always been interested in middle-eastern weapons, but I was never able to find good information on them. Thank you for expanding my martial knowledge.
hey Matt, great video love seeing old weapons and how their former owners maintain them, love that you even talked about the edge most people seem to avoid it like the plague
Love this topic Mat. It would be great if you could do more surrounding construction methods and there influences on use, popularity, context, pros and cons etc. Love your work.
Hi Matt, the word "Afghan' means Pashtun in Persian and they are the only people who live in tribes in Afghanistan. Pathan is an Indian word which many find offensive and we never called ourselves that.
What are you talking about? Pathan is an honorary term for Afghani Pashtuns in India. A lot of them use it as a surname as well. Consider Irfan Pathan, a famous cricketer. Pathan is also sometimes colloquially used for strong men.
Hi Matt, i was wondering will you ever review a yatagan, have you ever handled one brefore, what do you think about yatagans in general? I am really interested about your oppinion
Kapri Sladoled I have owned yataghans, but I only own a yataghan bayonet at the moment. I suppose it would be good enough to talk about them in a video, as the blade is the right shape at least.
Hey Matt wanted to throw this possibility. I just watched the other video on the khyber and mistaking it as a piercing/thrusting weapon with the point. Could it be that the surgeon only saw a majority of gashes and slashes and was able to treat them because the people that were the victim of a thrust didn't make it to the operating table? :D just a thought.
What a lovely knife! Long knife is truly my favorite weapon and every culture has its uniwue battle knife. I love it. However the hilts on lot of indian sword or pulwar type sabres seems to me a bit clumsy (especially due to the wide pommel) Have you tried to chop with them?
I wonder if you noticed that it is very similar to the Falcata from classic period Iberian Peninsula, save for the overall blade shape. The grip is nearly identical.
Thank you for yet another great video. :) My question is: While mentioning "pesh kabz" you said that Midlle Eastern and Asian mails were usually not riveted. I saw a lot of Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal and Mamluk mail armour, some were made of rings as small as 3-4 milimeters in diameter; but I have never ever ever seen one with non-riveted rings. I must say I'm quite suprised such tihng even existed in those cultures. Are you certainly sure about this information?
scholagladiatoria Could the Khyber Knife's protrusion on the end be for a tassel? Seems like you wouldn't want it to make contact with other blades if you could help it. And, tassels are distracting (which might help in making deceptive motions in order to cut but avoid contact with another blade or a shield).
There is found the occasional wootz khyber knife, indicating that the Afghani smiths had to be pretty decent, as that stuff isn't the easiest material to work.
Al Massey Hi Al - one of the difficult factors in this equation is that khyber knives were also made in India for wealthy Indians, and invariably the Indian ones are much better quality. Though there were various alliances between Indian princes and the Afghan nobility at certain points, so they may have even been sold/given as weapons for Afghans by Indians sometimes as well.
True. But that doesn't mean that there weren't very good smiths working in the area. Their final product may have been cruder looking but still very effective.
scholagladiatoria Don't forget Rudyard Kipling's 1895 classic: "The Ballad of East and West". After that, I'll bet every Briton who served in Afghanistan or India had to bring one back to hang on the wall... "..They have taken the Oath of the Brother-in-Blood on fire and fresh-cut sod, 85 On the hilt and the haft of the Khyber knife, and the Wondrous Names of God."
Fascinating. Though I may be wrong, and it can certainly send you down an incorrect path, I always thought comparing the weapons from other cultures and their respective uses could be informative for HEMA folks...shame there are not more treatises from other areas/cultures. Interestingly the pommels on these weapons are quite similar to the shashka, another "large knife." Thanks for the video.
I like and agree with how you stay out of the politics of the Age of Imperialism and the modern issues as well. My favorite gun guy on RUclips (Paul Harrell) has the same explicit policy. You shouldn't dilute your message and let the channel bog down. The comments section is what that is for! Other content makers are more inclined and willing to deal with those issues.
Cultures have distinct ways of doing everything. Their cuisine, language, music, myths, clothing, and of course weapons. I think knowing a culture's weapons is important to understanding them. Clausewitz said that the way a nation makes war is ultimately an expression of their collective capabilities, traditions, mindset, desired outcome, etc. I agree.
Everyone who want to enter to Afghanistan with his troops, if this rulers do not want to use "methods" of Kirghiz Chan, must be prepared to lose. Because this country is special. They are a bit like Poles, the country is like the big family quarrel, but until a war. In a war they are changing radically and they are acting together! So, if this ruler do not want kill them all, you should be ready for constant combat with the proud and warlike highlanders. Is this country deserved the lost of blood of "our boys"?
frankdn109 Most swords can slash or thrust. Optimizing the two were the goals of most blacksmiths www.thearma.org/essays/thrusting_vs_cutting.html#.VaK_KPlVhBc
+frankdn109 Not always. A chop can slice a head right off and cut major arteries. Plus, you don't get stuck in the opponment's body. That's why sabers like the scimitars are used on horseback : you can strike then go on instead of loosing your weapon.
super; where else could we get such an obscure education on how famous knives, wpns, actually worked; also consider the relative velocity of the kyber-knife tip vs an opps' wrist in a duel; the kyber may be one of the most effective long-range knife-dueling wpns ever
what other multifuntion uses were these blades used for. like the kurka knife just how many heads would you be likly to lob off in its use. was it used more to cut bamboo and other jobs. take the bowie knife and its mutifuntion uses. i saw bangladash women their kitchen knives were fixed standing and they would use both hands to peel and chop. nice video
Well I base what I've said on Middle Eastern and Asian mail in British museums that I have looked at, as well as antique examples I have seen for sale, and I would say that the majority of these are not riveted. For example, see the Indo-Persian examples from the Wallace Collection. If you just Google image search 'Indo-Persian chainmail' most examples that come up are not riveted.
This is very similar to Kard knives and Kabab barg knife. Have you any information on persian weaponry such as cleavers, shamshir and others? Could you do a review of Khanda sword from India?
That little lanyard hole projection on the end of the hilt would also make a fairly good "brain button," popping a hole in an opponent's skull with a good bash. Even if they got away from the fight, they'd slowly die of a nasty infection later. o.O
It has nothing to do with the weapon topic but It kinda striked me how the situation of afghanistan you're depicting in the begining of the video seems to be similar to the situation of Gaul or Brittain during the latene period, except for the "king" but I guess you could say Vercingetorix kinda was for a brief period during the Roman invasion of Gaul. I know I'm completely off topic haha, but you could basically change "Afghans" by "Gauls" and "Britts" by "Romans", I find it very interesting :)
+Antonin Chenel Difference being, Gaul was subsequently incorporated into Rome fairly early and Gaul was henceforth (like most other areas of the european mainland) integrated into the roman (and other) empire(s) without much trouble while afghanistan has proved to be a major obstacle to every conqueror for so many centuries. The example of scotland seems more apt but here too, scotland (like britan) was protected by the sea in addition to its native mountains and in many ways, it lay at the edge of the world while afghanistan lay at the crossroads, a place of intersection of the Persian, Chinese , Indian and Russian civilizations. Could the british experience in subduing scotland have helped them in the "frontier wars" ?
My guess on the part on the hilt from a logical stand point and probably your guess too would be for hanging it. It has a hole which means it has to have something threaded through it, otherwise its pointless to have the hole cut, so I would say hanging or to tie off to your wrist incase you dropped it or it sprung out your hand when cutting? Something to that measure.
a more native saber was a shah shish qa (shash'qa) with a hilt and sheath similar to the "Khyber knife" (salawar yatagan) or the pesh kabz (karud). Afghan shah shish qa have a more curved blade than Kazak etc ones and usually with a short wide yelman. Relation is particularly to the Persian kard and Turkish yatagans and bichaq (pichok etc.) Notably in Western India is a dagger very similar to a pesh kabz but with separate scales for handle and pommel and with a straight blade where the Afghan ones are usually curved, often double curved. Yours seems to be more of this type. I can't tell if it has the four scales, but both its blade and pommel shape are more NW Indian than Afhan per se. In this region it is known as a choora. All of these weapons have usually a bolster and tang band, creating an ibeam effect to the tang shape.
I heard in a military history shop the sort that sell books and antiques that the little "nipple" on the bottom of the handle on the dagger was for cutting your thumb. Something about having to draw blood if you drew the knife?
There's never been an authoritative source claiming that for any blade which wasn't purely ceremonial. Admittedly, some modern soldiers who have blades as utility weapons do say stuff like that to freak out tourists and get them to stop asking to see the weapon.
can you do more videos on middle-east and central asian weapons.. Ive only seen them at their best in assassins creed 1 but they are really cool they look like a breed of katana and broadsword
The tab...from what I heard had to do with colored ribbons. Identify its owner....region....etc. also if you must use it as a grappling hook! You can retrieve it.
So Crocodile Dundee would be in for a unpleasant surprise if would have pulled of his “You call that a knive? This is a knive!” in Afghanistan.... Beautiful lines on this knive
The blades are pretty similar to the Filipino swords/knives which are mostly what I know as well as most of what I own. Although I also have some Indian sabers as well as russian and a few Chinese swords and a Korean blade.
weird thing, the Khyber Knife at forst gave me the assotiation toward the Sax/Seax, exept tgat the sax were sharpened on the straight side. but its like a huge knife without a handguard....strange...
I would be forever grateful if you could figure out why southeast asiatic, and central to northern asiatic blades have no actual handguards? just a ring that acts similarly to a habaki?. And also, why does true stabbing swords only exist in europe.
Many European designs feature no crossguards as well (seaxes, bollock daggers, hunting swords). Also it should be noted, that the extended crossguards (as found in longswords and rapiers) were used for more than just stopping cuts to the hand (namely for stabbing at close range or catching an enemy blade). Most knives don't need a crossguard, because they don't lend themselves to parrying anyway. When using a crossguard to defend your hand during a parry a proper technique is crucial, without it even a long crossguard won't shield your hand from most blows. Finally, rapiers (and other thrusting swords) require quite a bit of training to use effectively, while cut and thrust swords can be used by someone with relatively little aptitude and still deliver a decent amount of damage (anybody can flail around swinging his sword, thrusting and parrying thrusts is more complicated). It's also noteworthy, that narrow swords (like rapiers) require reasonably pure steels, which are usually very expensive (unless mass-produced according to fairly modern technologies, which were available mostly in Europe at the time).
Jersey Streicher "It's also noteworthy, that narrow swords (like rapiers) require reasonably pure steels, which are usually very expensive (unless mass-produced according to fairly modern technologies, which were available mostly in Europe at the time)." I disagree with this final statement of yours since the east was far advanced in metallurgy compared to Europe. For example, when Alexander the Great traveled to India, one of the things he looked for was the fabled whootz steel, a rare rare type of steel that was very light, strong yet sharp, the so called damazcus steel originated in India to. In fact India was one of the first civilizations to produce steel.
indrajeet Wootz, damascus, tamahagane and all sorts of pattern-welded steels have one thing in common: they start up as very impure steels, then the blacksmith folds them over many times to physically remove most of the impurities, and evenly distribute the non-removable impurities along the blade, to prevent the formation of weak points. This manufacturing technology became obsolete with the introduction of more modern siderurgy (i.e. industry concerned with producing steel from ore). The difference between a rapier made from relatively pure European steel and a shamshir made from wootz (or what not) is such, that the steel in the rapier is already cleaner than the final wootz blade. PS: it's not true that pattern-welded steel is somehow lighter than normal steel. It just allows you to make a lighter sword from the same bloom. I suggest you spend some time reading about different techniques in iron metallurgy (not just sword production).
Jersey Streicher I thought we were talking about sword making. As for Iron metallurgy, we Indians were producing iron long before Europe, I suggest you look up the Iron pillar of Chandragupta II Vikramaditya: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_pillar_of_Delhi The pillar has attracted the attention of archaeologists and metallurgists and has been called "a testament to the skill of ancient Indian blacksmiths" because of its high resistance to corrosion.
indrajeet "we Indians were producing iron long before Europe," -True story, but you obtained your steel from bloomeries (which aren't very effective, and yield a mediocre product) or crucibles (which make good steel, but a very expensive one). Crucible steel was also produced in Europe.
8:45 What a disappointment! For a moment I thought you were going to say that we're very lucky to have someone from your HEMA society HERE TODAY who was just recently badly injured by a Khyber knife. :-)
Why wouldn't the Afghan warriors thrust with their Khyber knives? It seems irrational to completely ignore such an advantage of a weapon. If, for some reason, the users never, or only very rarely thrusted, why would Afghan weaponsmiths continue going to the trouble of creating such an acute point? Might as well make a more rounded, tougher tip if it wasn't going to be used in that way anyway.
All good points (pardon the pun), nothing I'd disagree with. But the 19thC British accounts of people who spent a lot of time in India and Afghanistan (include military surgeons who treated weapon wounds) repeatedly say that they did not thrust with these long charah (Khyber knives). Why? I think there are a few possible reasons and I'll make a video about them. Two things to think about though - first, most people under stress more naturally hit rather than thrust, second, perhaps there was a difference between common Afghans and well trained Afghans (many soldiers were just pressed into service from their farms).
kill a man and he is dead... wound a man and it takes resources and manpower to get him off the field and fixed up... also thrusts are deadly but big slashes are demoralising, imagine fighting a man who just turned your comrade into a living filet instead of a man who just stabbed him to death in a clean thrust
They are deceptively simple looking, yet quite menacing weapons.
Their emphasis on a very sharp edge with a t-section reinforcement make for a good use of lower grade steel.
I do love the kyber knife. It is a very practical, no nonsense design....most of the time.
The loop is there so that you can put a strap on your wrist so that if you accidentally lose your grip on it, it won't fly off and destroy your HDTV.
That's some funny shit lol
Saw it coming, still lol'd. Good stuff.
Semont Mentos Seriously, you don't want to do that. If you lose your grip on something like that. The last thing you want is for that thing to be jerking an dancing about on the end of your wrist.
Ah, th' good ol' Wii.
We shall never forget its greatest glories an' meme-ist tragedies 'til ev'rythin' tears asunder from th' atoms up.
The loop is not there so that u can strap it to your wrist. It’s actually for decoration. They use it to hang small jingle like things called “zoondai” or “Joonday” in the Pashto language. We afghans decorate everything with it from curtains to vehicles to clothes lol
"That's not a knife...THIS IS A KNIFE"
The Khyber knife looks like it would've been produced in Mordor.
I'm Afghan and the afghan word I've always used for 'sword' is 'shamsher'.
Do you think this is similar to how "gladius" in Latin means "sword" and not "Roman sword"?
That is Persian, the Afghan (Pashto) word for sword is "Tura."
That's Persian.
That's a iranian language not Afghan pashtun....
That’s dari which is a slang type language to farsi which is Iran and pashuto is mainly Pakistan
I think you need some Afghan input. Although I am not into weapons but I do know something. The big knife you show is from south of Afghanistan. the small part at the end is to put your mark on it (usually some jewelry or cotton ball fastened with silk), usually the method of fight was to cut (especially the neck). A heavy armor (A Can :) ) was a disadvantage in mountain and hot desert so less need to pierce it :). However in north of Afghanistan especially northeast and north west people were using Persian and Arabic weapon. As they were Aryans the same as Iran people (Oldest tribes living in this area). Pish Qabz is a Persian word meaning (front holder) which was put in front of belt (the same that Arabs do), Also Kard (Knife) is a Persian word. We have something called (Silaba or Siraba) which is mainly made in Charikar in north of Kabul, and it is hard enough to cut the khyber knives. We had also, shamshir, khanjar (Dagger), Zobin, orz, Chaqoo, Tabarzin, etc as medieval weapons. But also Indian weapons were common. An Afghan worrier should have very strong fingers that hold the handle so tight that the hand should never move towards the blade and when you don't pierce then no need to have a hand protector, because usually your hand will not slide towards the blade if you only slash (I think).
Wtf? All Afghans like the Pashtuns are Aryans from north to south, Iran is not really Aryan genetically, they are more related to middle easterners. However these are modern weapons and ancient ones looked much different. The long sword is beleived to have originated around Afghansitan and was the original weapon there before it was repalced.
This is a really cool video. I've always been interested in middle-eastern weapons, but I was never able to find good information on them. Thank you for expanding my martial knowledge.
***** really? its almost as if most of the area of the world the west calls "the middle east" is located in Asia. who would of thunk it? :)
@@jagerben4743 bro Afghanistan is located in central Asia not middle eastern
Daud's sword from Dishonored
Also Dr. Decker's knives from nightbreed.
hey Matt, great video love seeing old weapons and how their former owners maintain them, love that you even talked about the edge most people seem to avoid it like the plague
Stabbing regular people, I really got a huge lough! Love the video!
Daud's blade pretty much =D
Love this topic Mat. It would be great if you could do more surrounding construction methods and there influences on use, popularity, context, pros and cons etc. Love your work.
Hi Matt, the word "Afghan' means Pashtun in Persian and they are the only people who live in tribes in Afghanistan. Pathan is an Indian word which many find offensive and we never called ourselves that.
We dont use the term ''Pathan'' in derogatory sense.
true
What are you talking about? Pathan is an honorary term for Afghani Pashtuns in India. A lot of them use it as a surname as well. Consider Irfan Pathan, a famous cricketer. Pathan is also sometimes colloquially used for strong men.
@@003Sarka Its derogtory to us, we don't like being called that because its used a as slur in Pakistan. Call us Pashtun or Afghan.
Very interesting design with the T-section, to solve the stiffness problem when lacking the spring-hardening. Thanks for the video, very educational!
Hi Matt, i was wondering will you ever review a yatagan, have you ever handled one brefore, what do you think about yatagans in general? I am really interested about your oppinion
Kapri Sladoled I have owned yataghans, but I only own a yataghan bayonet at the moment. I suppose it would be good enough to talk about them in a video, as the blade is the right shape at least.
+scholagladiatoria greetings from the former colonies I request a duel to 8 rounds using bastard swords I've got two trainers
Hey Matt wanted to throw this possibility. I just watched the other video on the khyber and mistaking it as a piercing/thrusting weapon with the point. Could it be that the surgeon only saw a majority of gashes and slashes and was able to treat them because the people that were the victim of a thrust didn't make it to the operating table? :D just a thought.
What a lovely knife! Long knife is truly my favorite weapon and every culture has its uniwue battle knife. I love it. However the hilts on lot of indian sword or pulwar type sabres seems to me a bit clumsy (especially due to the wide pommel) Have you tried to chop with them?
they are not for chopping bro .. they are designed for making slashing cuts .. use axe for chopping !!
I wonder if you noticed that it is very similar to the Falcata from classic period Iberian Peninsula, save for the overall blade shape. The grip is nearly identical.
Thank you for yet another great video. :)
My question is: While mentioning "pesh kabz" you said that Midlle Eastern and Asian mails were usually not riveted. I saw a lot of Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal and Mamluk mail armour, some were made of rings as small as 3-4 milimeters in diameter; but I have never ever ever seen one with non-riveted rings. I must say I'm quite suprised such tihng even existed in those cultures. Are you certainly sure about this information?
scholagladiatoria
Could the Khyber Knife's protrusion on the end be for a tassel? Seems like you wouldn't want it to make contact with other blades if you could help it. And, tassels are distracting (which might help in making deceptive motions in order to cut but avoid contact with another blade or a shield).
does that protrusion have a purpose? (upper right had of video.)
Bree Thomas
It's a purposeful protusion.
There is found the occasional wootz khyber knife, indicating that the Afghani smiths had to be pretty decent, as that stuff isn't the easiest material to work.
Al Massey Hi Al - one of the difficult factors in this equation is that khyber knives were also made in India for wealthy Indians, and invariably the Indian ones are much better quality. Though there were various alliances between Indian princes and the Afghan nobility at certain points, so they may have even been sold/given as weapons for Afghans by Indians sometimes as well.
True. But that doesn't mean that there weren't very good smiths working in the area. Their final product may have been cruder looking but still very effective.
scholagladiatoria Don't forget Rudyard Kipling's 1895 classic: "The Ballad of East and West". After that, I'll bet every Briton who served in Afghanistan or India had to bring one back to hang on the wall...
"..They have taken the Oath of the Brother-in-Blood on fire and fresh-cut sod, 85
On the hilt and the haft of the Khyber knife, and the Wondrous Names of God."
+hit squad not true
Gopi Chand Believe it or not it is.
Fascinating. Though I may be wrong, and it can certainly send you down an incorrect path, I always thought comparing the weapons from other cultures and their respective uses could be informative for HEMA folks...shame there are not more treatises from other areas/cultures. Interestingly the pommels on these weapons are quite similar to the shashka, another "large knife." Thanks for the video.
The dagger does quite a nice "schwing"-sound coming out of the scabbard :D
Cool video. But, I admit I'm envious of your weapons collection LOL
I like and agree with how you stay out of the politics of the Age of Imperialism and the modern issues as well. My favorite gun guy on RUclips (Paul Harrell) has the same explicit policy. You shouldn't dilute your message and let the channel bog down. The comments section is what that is for! Other content makers are more inclined and willing to deal with those issues.
Cultures have distinct ways of doing everything. Their cuisine, language, music, myths, clothing, and of course weapons. I think knowing a culture's weapons is important to understanding them. Clausewitz said that the way a nation makes war is ultimately an expression of their collective capabilities, traditions, mindset, desired outcome, etc. I agree.
Ooo! Ichigo's Shikai (Zangetsu)! Probably inspired from this?
Very wicked looking blade. I like it :)
Everyone who want to enter to Afghanistan with his troops, if this rulers do not want to use "methods" of Kirghiz Chan, must be prepared to lose. Because this country is special. They are a bit like Poles, the country is like the big family quarrel, but until a war. In a war they are changing radically and they are acting together! So, if this ruler do not want kill them all, you should be ready for constant combat with the proud and warlike highlanders. Is this country deserved the lost of blood of "our boys"?
A slashing weapon, huh. I remember from my fencing days, reading an ancient truism from somewhere: "Edge wounds. Point kills."
frankdn109 Most swords can slash or thrust. Optimizing the two were the goals of most blacksmiths
www.thearma.org/essays/thrusting_vs_cutting.html#.VaK_KPlVhBc
+frankdn109 Not always. A chop can slice a head right off and cut major arteries. Plus, you don't get stuck in the opponment's body. That's why sabers like the scimitars are used on horseback : you can strike then go on instead of loosing your weapon.
WOW.....NASTY...... HOW LONG IS THAT BLADE ?
To my knowledge, most unrivited indo-persian mail is from the 18th century or later, and is ornamental, compared to 17th and earlier.
That little thing on the bottom of the grip was for attaching pommels. But they are all gone now, used up ending people rightly... =(
super; where else could we get such an obscure education on how famous knives, wpns, actually worked; also consider the relative velocity of the kyber-knife tip vs an opps' wrist in a duel; the kyber may be one of the most effective long-range knife-dueling wpns ever
Khyber knife looks sweet.
Would-totally-own/10 rating.
what other multifuntion uses were these blades used for. like the kurka knife just how many heads would you be likly to lob off in its use. was it used more to cut bamboo and other jobs. take the bowie knife and its mutifuntion uses. i saw bangladash women their kitchen knives were fixed standing and they would use both hands to peel and chop. nice video
Well I base what I've said on Middle Eastern and Asian mail in British museums that I have looked at, as well as antique examples I have seen for sale, and I would say that the majority of these are not riveted. For example, see the Indo-Persian examples from the Wallace Collection. If you just Google image search 'Indo-Persian chainmail' most examples that come up are not riveted.
This is very similar to Kard knives and Kabab barg knife.
Have you any information on persian weaponry such as cleavers, shamshir and others?
Could you do a review of Khanda sword from India?
Do you know much about kris/keris weapons from Indonesia/Malaysia/the Philippines?
The hole on the pommel end is most likely for a colorful tassel. Used as a distraction the tassel was a common attachment in asia on any melee weapon.
Any single edged sword turns into that after years of abuse and over sharpening
3:53
Daud's blade is awesome!
That little hole on the pummel is simply for a decorative piece that is missing. I have one and it has the decorative piece on it.
What are the best sources for Khyber repros or authentic new manufacture versions?
That little lanyard hole projection on the end of the hilt would also make a fairly good "brain button," popping a hole in an opponent's skull with a good bash. Even if they got away from the fight, they'd slowly die of a nasty infection later. o.O
You got any indian bladed weapons from 19th century and earlier?
Yes, please see my tulwar and axe videos.
It has nothing to do with the weapon topic but It kinda striked me how the situation of afghanistan you're depicting in the begining of the video seems to be similar to the situation of Gaul or Brittain during the latene period, except for the "king" but I guess you could say Vercingetorix kinda was for a brief period during the Roman invasion of Gaul.
I know I'm completely off topic haha, but you could basically change "Afghans" by "Gauls" and "Britts" by "Romans", I find it very interesting :)
+Antonin Chenel Difference being, Gaul was subsequently incorporated into Rome fairly early and Gaul was henceforth (like most other areas of the european mainland) integrated into the roman (and other) empire(s) without much trouble while afghanistan has proved to be a major obstacle to every conqueror for so many centuries. The example of scotland seems more apt but here too, scotland (like britan) was protected by the sea in addition to its native mountains and in many ways, it lay at the edge of the world while afghanistan lay at the crossroads, a place of intersection of the Persian, Chinese , Indian and Russian civilizations. Could the british experience in subduing scotland have helped them in the "frontier wars" ?
I've a big Khyber knife that goes with me hiking and camping. A useful camp knife, it can also dismember any hostile intruders.
Do you have a video on the Katara? The Rajput /Mughal fist Dagger.
It is in some ways, though the cross-section is very different - the T-section of the Khyber knife/Charah is quite particular.
My guess on the part on the hilt from a logical stand point and probably your guess too would be for hanging it. It has a hole which means it has to have something threaded through it, otherwise its pointless to have the hole cut, so I would say hanging or to tie off to your wrist incase you dropped it or it sprung out your hand when cutting? Something to that measure.
This looks pretty much the same as The Whalers swords in Dishonored
It's Daud and his assassins' sword.
Not the whaler's sword.
a more native saber was a shah shish qa (shash'qa) with a hilt and sheath similar to the "Khyber knife" (salawar yatagan) or the pesh kabz (karud). Afghan shah shish qa have a more curved blade than Kazak etc ones and usually with a short wide yelman. Relation is particularly to the Persian kard and Turkish yatagans and bichaq (pichok etc.) Notably in Western India is a dagger very similar to a pesh kabz but with separate scales for handle and pommel and with a straight blade where the Afghan ones are usually curved, often double curved. Yours seems to be more of this type. I can't tell if it has the four scales, but both its blade and pommel shape are more NW Indian than Afhan per se. In this region it is known as a choora. All of these weapons have usually a bolster and tang band, creating an ibeam effect to the tang shape.
I heard in a military history shop the sort that sell books and antiques that the little "nipple" on the bottom of the handle on the dagger was for cutting your thumb. Something about having to draw blood if you drew the knife?
Bullcrap, they say that about the hoof mark in khukri knives too, the main household tool for the nepali
There's never been an authoritative source claiming that for any blade which wasn't purely ceremonial.
Admittedly, some modern soldiers who have blades as utility weapons do say stuff like that to freak out tourists and get them to stop asking to see the weapon.
It looks almost like the dagger was made from an old khyber knife
can you do more videos on middle-east and central asian weapons.. Ive only seen them at their best in assassins creed 1 but they are really cool they look like a breed of katana and broadsword
The tab...from what I heard had to do with colored ribbons. Identify its owner....region....etc. also if you must use it as a grappling hook! You can retrieve it.
What do you think of the yataghan? Was it an effective weapon?
its a giant khukuri
No, actually pretty weak and sturdy compared to the Khyber.
Matchlocks? in the 19th century? would they have not had flintlocks? or even primer cap guns?
So Crocodile Dundee would be in for a unpleasant surprise if would have pulled of his “You call that a knive? This is a knive!” in Afghanistan....
Beautiful lines on this knive
It’s a sword
@@ChromeMan04 It’s a knife sword :P
@@Divine_Serpent_Geh just a sword lol
When the last weapon came out I thought it was an adjustable wrench lol
looks like an assassins blade from dishonored
Hahaha.
Daud.
Your sword.
You should make a video about Norse weaponry!
Wow that's a damn big chura(چُورا ).
Beautifull sword sir its also called khyber sword and salwar yatghan
The blades are pretty similar to the Filipino swords/knives which are mostly what I know as well as most of what I own. Although I also have some Indian sabers as well as russian and a few Chinese swords and a Korean blade.
weird thing, the Khyber Knife at forst gave me the assotiation toward the Sax/Seax, exept tgat the sax were sharpened on the straight side. but its like a huge knife without a handguard....strange...
I find his pronunciation funny...'Pathan' is said 'Pataan' . Otherwise, I'm liking your videos :)
They are soft steel. So they sharpen easy.....and are forgiving.
the same use of an scramasaxe a long cutlass for hacking !!!
at first i was like, uh the final weapon used was a modern pipe wrench, thats odd...
The Khyber knife seems a lot like a seax from the iron age.
The one thing is many Filipino blades are very heavy forward weighted but are spring steel
I also have this last one anti armour dagger
Where Harry Flashman won his spurs!
I could really use one of those for chopping vegetables.
Wicked blade I like it only thing I would do is to use better stronger quality steel
I would like it if u take some afghan pov in ur videos
they remind me of the medieval duack
If one saw a video where afghan soldiers "do" the jumping jack, one will know why they only cut with a pointy knife.
Never seen a Pesh kabs (spelling?) very interesting dagger.
I would be forever grateful if you could figure out why southeast asiatic, and central to northern asiatic blades have no actual handguards? just a ring that acts similarly to a habaki?.
And also, why does true stabbing swords only exist in europe.
Many European designs feature no crossguards as well (seaxes, bollock daggers, hunting swords).
Also it should be noted, that the extended crossguards (as found in longswords and rapiers) were used for more than just stopping cuts to the hand (namely for stabbing at close range or catching an enemy blade).
Most knives don't need a crossguard, because they don't lend themselves to parrying anyway.
When using a crossguard to defend your hand during a parry a proper technique is crucial, without it even a long crossguard won't shield your hand from most blows.
Finally, rapiers (and other thrusting swords) require quite a bit of training to use effectively, while cut and thrust swords can be used by someone with relatively little aptitude and still deliver a decent amount of damage (anybody can flail around swinging his sword, thrusting and parrying thrusts is more complicated).
It's also noteworthy, that narrow swords (like rapiers) require reasonably pure steels, which are usually very expensive (unless mass-produced according to fairly modern technologies, which were available mostly in Europe at the time).
Jersey Streicher
"It's also noteworthy, that narrow swords (like rapiers) require reasonably pure steels, which are usually very expensive (unless mass-produced according to fairly modern technologies, which were available mostly in Europe at the time)."
I disagree with this final statement of yours since the east was far advanced in metallurgy compared to Europe. For example, when Alexander the Great traveled to India, one of the things he looked for was the fabled whootz steel, a rare rare type of steel that was very light, strong yet sharp, the so called damazcus steel originated in India to. In fact India was one of the first civilizations to produce steel.
indrajeet
Wootz, damascus, tamahagane and all sorts of pattern-welded steels have one thing in common: they start up as very impure steels, then the blacksmith folds them over many times to physically remove most of the impurities, and evenly distribute the non-removable impurities along the blade, to prevent the formation of weak points.
This manufacturing technology became obsolete with the introduction of more modern siderurgy (i.e. industry concerned with producing steel from ore).
The difference between a rapier made from relatively pure European steel and a shamshir made from wootz (or what not) is such, that the steel in the rapier is already cleaner than the final wootz blade.
PS: it's not true that pattern-welded steel is somehow lighter than normal steel.
It just allows you to make a lighter sword from the same bloom.
I suggest you spend some time reading about different techniques in iron metallurgy (not just sword production).
Jersey Streicher
I thought we were talking about sword making. As for Iron metallurgy, we Indians were producing iron long before Europe, I suggest you look up the Iron pillar of Chandragupta II Vikramaditya:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_pillar_of_Delhi
The pillar has attracted the attention of archaeologists and metallurgists and has been called "a testament to the skill of ancient Indian blacksmiths" because of its high resistance to corrosion.
indrajeet
"we Indians were producing iron long before Europe,"
-True story, but you obtained your steel from bloomeries (which aren't very effective, and yield a mediocre product) or crucibles (which make good steel, but a very expensive one).
Crucible steel was also produced in Europe.
*applauds the comments section*
8:45 What a disappointment! For a moment I thought you were going to say that we're very lucky to have someone from your HEMA society HERE TODAY who was just recently badly injured by a Khyber knife. :-)
Hello mat. it isnt pathan. its pashtuns. and pashtuns and afghans both refer to the ethnic group.
The pesh kabz u had wasnt a pesh kabz,it was a karud
Now THIS is a huge peixeira!
Nice!
It's looks like orc sword from LOTR
Why wouldn't the Afghan warriors thrust with their Khyber knives? It seems irrational to completely ignore such an advantage of a weapon. If, for some reason, the users never, or only very rarely thrusted, why would Afghan weaponsmiths continue going to the trouble of creating such an acute point? Might as well make a more rounded, tougher tip if it wasn't going to be used in that way anyway.
All good points (pardon the pun), nothing I'd disagree with. But the 19thC British accounts of people who spent a lot of time in India and Afghanistan (include military surgeons who treated weapon wounds) repeatedly say that they did not thrust with these long charah (Khyber knives). Why? I think there are a few possible reasons and I'll make a video about them. Two things to think about though - first, most people under stress more naturally hit rather than thrust, second, perhaps there was a difference between common Afghans and well trained Afghans (many soldiers were just pressed into service from their farms).
what about flyssa sword of north africa
Nearly - Pesh Kabz :-)
I also have the same sword
I have like this one
The hilt look kind of like early Germanic sword's.
kill a man and he is dead... wound a man and it takes resources and manpower to get him off the field and fixed up... also thrusts are deadly but big slashes are demoralising, imagine fighting a man who just turned your comrade into a living filet instead of a man who just stabbed him to death in a clean thrust
I AM SERE.
Oh nice