# Communities > Antique Arms & Armour Community > Middle-East, India & Africa (MEIA) >  Pesh Kabz

## Dave Wally

I've had this chap for a little while now, which turned up in our local charity shop and haven't really looked into it in any way. It has an ivory handle, with a nice pattern on the blade, but it's a little knocked about. The Silver 2 Anna coins attached to the handle are dated 1907; would this be about the date it was made, or might it be of more recent manufacture?

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## Gene Wilkinson

It is a knife known as a Choora from Afghanistan.
Although the date of 1907 may have had significance to the maker or buyer, I would date this particular example to a little later.

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## Dave Wally

Thanks for the reply; A Choora? Not sure I've heard of one of them, I'll have to have another look at it!

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## eric t

> Thanks for the reply; A Choora? Not sure I've heard of one of them, I'll have to have another look at it!


Choora and karud are the straight bladed versions of the pesh which has a curved blade, the choora has an eared hilt hilt and a distinctive look, the karud is more like a pesh but with a straight blade, there are variations of course, this is just in general terms.

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## L. Braden

"Choora" or "chhura" is the Indian/Hindi term for what is called a "chareh" or "charah" in the Pathan regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. "Kard" is also used generically for a large or "sword" knife.

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## eric t

> "Choora" or "chhura" is the Indian/Hindi term for what is called a "chareh" or "charah" in the Pathan regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. "Kard" is also used generically for a large or "sword" knife.


That may be true were these weapons originate but to collectors, dealers and interested individuals etc in the western world a "kard" is a straight bladed, single edged dagger from Persian, India, Afghanistan, Ottoman Empire and surrounding regions.

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## L. Braden

Chhura (phonetically, "choora") literally means "a large knife or dagger"; but judging by the blade, what Dave has appears to me to be a chhuri (phonetically, "chooree") or "small knife or dagger". As for dealers et al., they have ignorantly corrupted the original meanings of words (e.g., calling the straight sword used in the Egyptian Sudan a "kaskara").

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## Gene Wilkinson

You have to smile when everyone is basically right and still can't seem to agree!  :Wink: 

In this instance the most useful term for researching this particular knife is 'Choora'.
As I initially said: "It is a knife known as a Choora from Afghanistan."

We must remember that in many cases when we are looking at 'knives' or 'swords' from other cultures, often the most helpful terms for research (from our outside point of view) are those simple generic names brought back by the westerners that originally collected/cataloged these items. 
In short, while we may yearn for a specific proper name for these weapons, we may have to settle for a phonetic spelling in English of a general local word for 'knife'. Partly because the 'original' foreign collectors may have asked locals 'What is this called?' to be told simply (it's a) _'knife'_, but partly because often there won't even be a specific name for that particular 'knife' that would satisfy 'our' need for descriptive clarity. 
So we can find ourselves looking for hidden answers where none exist.
Does that make these general terms wrong? Or just not as precise as our obsession for labeling would want when we are faced with slight variations from the same geographical area?

So! Many well known 'names' for distinctive weapons from non-European cultures are simply the literal descriptive term in that cultures language: knife, sword, long knife, large knife, small knife, long handle, single fuller, double fuller, axe, saddle axe etc, etc.
Some others are far more a construct of European collectors clear lack of defining local terminology.
'Khyber knife' springs to mind.

So for me the simple truth is that because of our obsession with cataloging and collecting, if we didn't sometimes use imprecise phonetic spellings of generic indigenous words we would have to completely invent 'names' for these items to distinguish them within our own collections.
Or simply give them numbers on a scale invented arbitrarily by whoever first comprehensively cataloged them.

Which is better?



In the case of the 'Choora' the more contentious discussion is surely the lineage of these knives and the date of their development.

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## L. Braden

Great post, Gene, which sums up the subject admirably!
Speaking of "inventing", there's that mysterious word "pulwar" for a type of Afghan sword similar to the tulwar. The word baffled Egerton, Rawlinson, and Rost, and rightly so. It evidently first appeared in a 19th-century Russian publication, written in French (hence the spelling "pulouar"), on Oriental arms. It may have originated as a misprint for "tulwar", or it may have been an obscure dialect word.

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## L. Braden

P.S. The only 19th-century definition of "pulwar" (phonetic) or "palwar" that I can find in all the dictionaries and other sources, exclusive of the French one, is that of a native river boat of Bengal!

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## eric t

Here are some images that show the difference between what is called "karud". "pesh-kabz" and "choora", of course there are some examples that are not as easy to identify due to having traits from one of more types but in general this is how many collectors/dealers etc identify the three differing types. Discriptions gleaned from Artzi of Oriental Arms. I added a kard dagger and a kyber knife as well at the bottom for reference.


Karud: Primarily a mail piercing, straight bladed dagger. 10-18 inches long. Blade abruptly narrowing at its base, with a pronounced T spine and many times with edge reinforcement rib. Massive handle, one piece or two slab grip on a full tang. It is well distributed in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Persia and Central Asian Countries. They all show a similar blade and differ mostly in handle materials and scabbard decoration.  





Pesh-Kabz: A development of the karud, with a similar but re-curving blade and slightly down curving handle, perfected to be the best mail piercing blade. Reinforced edge and sometimes thickened tip. Two slab grip. It is well distributed in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.






Choora: This is also a development of the karud with a similar blade, but usually smaller, 10-12 inches long. It has a very typical handle with grips composed of two or three sectors of metal, ivory, horn or a combination of all, with the pommel tips extending down more than in its brothers. Its distribution is limited to the areas around the borders of todays Pakistan and Afghanistan. It should be mentioned that later made such daggers are widely found in various antique arms fairs with a variety of grip materials ranging from wood to modern plastics. 


Kard.



Kyber.

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## L. Braden

Great stuff, eric! Thanks indeed!
By the way, "karud" is the phonetic form of "karad" (accent on the first "a"), of which "kard" is a shorter but equally common version - "karad" evidently being more common in India.

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## Gene Wilkinson

> Great post, Gene, which sums up the subject admirably!
> Speaking of "inventing", there's that mysterious word "pulwar" for a type of Afghan sword similar to the tulwar. The word baffled Egerton, Rawlinson, and Rost, and rightly so. It evidently first appeared in a 19th-century Russian publication, written in French (hence the spelling "pulouar"), on Oriental arms. It may have originated as a misprint for "tulwar", or it may have been an obscure dialect word.


Thanks. 
It's an interesting question.
Tulwar is such a misused label in itself that I guess the easiest answer would be to add one more sword to the list of those that it's applied to and conclude that it's a misprint or slight mistranslation due to accent.

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## Gene Wilkinson

Following on from Eric's post, I'll add my views on the family of the pesh-kabz.
I think that the Pesh/Karud seem to be parallel designs that served the same purpose. I don't agree that the Pesh-Kabz is a development of the Karud, I think that they are geographical/Ethnic variations of the same solution. 
They are often fine quality, sometimes 'knightly' quality daggers seemingly designed for efficient piercing.
The Karud varies from an almost 'Kard' like blade to a more usual T-section blade, sometimes quite broad but more often slender and sometimes extremely slender, often lightly hollow ground with a thickened 'V' section cutting edge. Clearly a stabbing weapon strengthened to be light armour piercing.
The Pesh-Kabz is a similar solution with a slender 'S' shape. Some of these Pesh and Karud have deliberately sharp angled sections at the tip, seemingly to open the round links of chain mail.
I attach pictures of a Pesh that I own with this feature.
Although the hilt scales are Nephrite and are rather heavy, the balance works and it would be hard to imagine a dagger that was a more perfect blend of form and function.

The Choora seems to be the 20th century variation of the Karud. I know that some people have tried to argue that it's origins are at least mid 19th century, but I just can't see the evidence backing that hypothesis.
That said and despite it's obvious 'embellishments' from it's purer earlier form, it seems to have lost little of it's efficient function.

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## eric t

> The Choora seems to be the 20th century variation of the Karud. I know that some people have tried to argue that it's origins are at least mid 19th century, but I just can't see the evidence backing that hypothesis.
> That said and despite it's obvious 'embellishments' from it's purer earlier form, it seems to have lost little of it's efficient function.


I know of a few references to "choora" that are from the 1800s, one is a list of weapons in an Indian exibition, no way of knowing if it refers to the same dagger we now call a choora but it is there, from "A classified and descriptive catalogue of the Indian Department: The International Exhibition of 1862". By J. Forbes Watson, Volume 2. The second reference is from an even older book, "A compendious Grammar of the current corrupt dialect of the jargon Hindostan, George Hadley, Mirza M. Fitrut
S. Rousseau, 1801. Again no way of knowing if this reference is about the Aghan choora. The third reference is from Afghanistan, 1874, "A Record of the Expeditions Undertaken Against the North-west Frontier Tribes: Compiled from the Military and Political Despatches", Lieut.-Colonel McGregor's Gazetteer, and Other Official Sources, Office of Superintendent of Government Printing, 1874. The forth is from Afghanistan, 1880, "The Cornhill Magazine, Volume 41", William Makepeace Thackeray Smith, Elder., 1880.

Below that I have posted two signs from an Indian museum which shows how they describe certain Indian swords and daggers/knifes. Notice that what we call a "khyber knife" is called a "chura", a name that is mentioned in older texts, also there ia no "karud", they call both the straight bladed as well as the curved bladed versions pesh-kabz.

Last is George Stones description of a "choora", it is hard to imagine that the choora is from the 20th century if Stone was describing it in his book which was published in the 1930s.

A compendious Grammar of the current corrupt dialect of the jargon Hindostan, George Hadley, Mirza M. Fitrut, S. Rousseau, 1801.



A classified and descriptive catalogue of the Indian Department: The International Exhibition of 1862.



A Record of the Expeditions Undertaken Against the North-west Frontier Tribes: Compiled from the Military and Political Despatches, Lieut.-Colonel McGregor's Gazetteer, and Other Official Sources, Office of Superintendent of Government Printing, 1874.



The Cornhill Magazine, Volume 41, William Makepeace Thackeray Smith, Elder., 1880.

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## L. Braden

Great post, eric! Thanks indeed!
Now we need to add charah, chareh, charay, chara, charra, charrah, etc. as the Pathan or Pashto version of the chura, churra, chhura, choora, etc.

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## L. Braden

P.S. The so-called "Afgan Chura" (horrible spelling!) is actually the typical Pathan charah.

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## Gene Wilkinson

Hi Eric,
Great research there.
The written references are interesting but seem to be more literal 'Large Knife' descriptions of what we ignorantly have always called 'Kyber Knives'.
Your 'Types of dagger' pic does show the problem with labels. When I think 'Jambiya' I don't think Syrian/Druze, but there it is.
As for the straight Peshkabz?

As far as I'm aware............. (famous last words)
The picture of the Choora in Stone's is the earliest that I've seen.
So we know they were around in '34  :Wink: 
Seriously though, I've always thought these are 20thc. Around the turn of.
If these daggers were widely used in the second half on the 19thc then I'd have expected them to come back to blightly en-massse with the Karud, Tulwar, 'Kyber Knives' and all the other souvenirs of the second Anglo-Afghan war.
Stone was cataloging all periods. So we don't know if that dagger in his photo was a year old or a hundred years old.
What we need is an example in a regimental museum with a cast iron provenance.

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## Guy C

Gene
Interesting that the evidence points to the the Choora being developed late in the 19th and into the  20th century. Everybody considers it to be an anti armour (mail) weapon but seems to have been developed just at the time that armour was dying out. Is it likely that the lack of examples returning to Britain was because they were not used as much against British troops as the  heavier slashing weapons? I believe there is some anecdotal evidence that Afghan tribesmen almost never used the so called Khyber Knife to stab but always to cut. Perhaps dedicated mail piercing weapons had simply fallen out of fashion at that time.

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## Gene Wilkinson

> Gene
> Interesting that the evidence points to the the Choora being developed late in the 19th and into the  20th century. Everybody considers it to be an anti armour (mail) weapon but seems to have been developed just at the time that armour was dying out. Is it likely that the lack of examples returning to Britain was because they were not used as much against British troops as the  heavier slashing weapons? I believe there is some anecdotal evidence that Afghan tribesmen almost never used the so called Khyber Knife to stab but always to cut. Perhaps dedicated mail piercing weapons had simply fallen out of fashion at that time.


If the knife that we call a 'choora' is essentially a 20thc but we can definitely see the 'Kyber Knife' described as 'Choora'.... Then are we seeing  the obvious? Is the term 'Khyber Knife' actually more accurate than we (I) thought?
If Choora means 'large Knife' then it's actually quite an accurate description of the damn things. They are a large knife which was presumably in use in the Khyber region? 

I actually wondered the same myself about a 20thc dagger being a ring splitter. I've always just thought of the Choora as more a general piercing dagger. Light armour or heavy clothing. Imagine the experience of the Afghan tribes in fighting the British with their heavy felt tunics? Perhaps the Choora was a development of the Karud to specifically kill redcoats?

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## eric t

> Great post, eric! Thanks indeed!
> Now we need to add charah, chareh, charay, chara, charra, charrah, etc. as the Pathan or Pashto version of the chura, churra, chhura, choora, etc.


Yes, now for the "khyber knife", despite what may seem to be a modern name you can find references to khyber knife as far back as the 1800s. There are as mentioned, several other names used for the same weapon. I have not seen "choora" directly attached to the khyber knife but there are several other names that are.




Chambers's Journal, Volume 66, Issue 2, W. & R. Chambers, 1889.


A Contribution Towards the Better Knowledge of the Topography, Ethnology, Resources, & History of Afghānistān, Office of the Superintendent of Government Print., 1871.


Chamber's Journal of Popular Literature, Science and Arts, W & R Chambers, 1892.


An Illustrated Handbook of Indian Arms: Being a Classified and Descriptive Catalogue of the Arms Exhibited at the India Museum, Earl Wilbraham Egerton Egerton, 1880.

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## L. Braden

Great post again!
There are numerous references to the charah under its various spellings. "Khyber knife" and "Salawar yataghan" are merely synonyms for this Pathan/Pashtun weapon, altho the latter is a misnomer - the true yataghan having, of course, a distinctly different blade. I assume that "Salawar" refers to where it was made - in NW India or thereabouts. In this regard, the only "Pulwar" I can find is the name of a river rather than a place name.
Cheers!

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## eric t

> Great post again!
> There are numerous references to the charah under its various spellings. "khyber knife" and "salawar yataghan" are merely synonyms for this Pathan/Pashtun weapon, altho the latter is a misnomer - the true yataghan having, of course, a distinctly different blade. I assume that "Salawar" refers to where it was made - in NW India or thereabouts. In this regard, the only "Pulwar" I can find is the name of a river rather than a place name.
> Cheers!



The khyber knife can certainly be called by a few names, salawar yatagan should be last on the list and maybe that term should just be abandoned. It is a lot harder to justify calling the Afghan sword a "pulwar", that name seems to reference a boat or place/river etc, I have never seen even one early reference to any sword being called a "pulwar". Even "pulouar" much like salawar yataghan just suddenly appears and the modern use of both terms seems to come from Egerton. Even "karud", which is another mystery word is easier to justify. When you look farther back in time, before the use of "pulwar" came into use, the Afghan sword was called the Afghan tulwar, there are many references to it, to me that is a much more accurate and descriptive term.

"Personal Records of the Kandahar Campaign", Waller Ashe D. Bogue, 1881.




"Annual Report, Volumes 11-20", Wellington College Natural Science Society, 1881.

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## L. Braden

Indeed, there's a "New York Times" article of Aug. 9, 1896, entitled "Afghans Use Tulwars", based on an interview with a British officer. However, "tulwar" is not an Afghan word, altho they may have adopted it. Their words for "tulwar" were "tegh" (generic) and "shamshir". As for Indian swords, according to Col. Lane Fox in his "Anthropological Collection", 1874 (a great work!): "Their forms are very various, and may undoubtedly be traced to certain root forms." He then lists different varieties in their phonetic spellings: "Bichwar, Pushkubz, Kyjar, Chellanum, Khunjar, Tulwar, Shumshere, Furrung, Mahomood, Sulawar [note that!], Kookree, Khora, and others."

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## eric t

> Indeed, there's a "New York Times" article of Aug. 9, 1896, entitled "Afghans Use Tulwars", based on an interview with a British officer. However, "tulwar" is not an Afghan word, altho they may have adopted it. Their words for "tulwar" were "tegh" (generic) and "shamshir". As for Indian swords, according to Col. Lane Fox in his "Anthropological Collection", 1874 (a great work!): "Their forms are very various, and may undoubtedly be traced to certain root forms." He then lists different varieties in their phonetic spellings: "Bichwar, Pushkubz, Kyjar, Chellanum, Khunjar, Tulwar, Shumshere, Furrung, Mahomood, Sulawar [note that!], Kookree, Khora, and others."



I think the concern here is not what the words for certain weapons were in their native lands and language but what were the first common terms used by early foreign visitors who saw and wrote about these weapons (armor as well), and how did we arrive at the current usage. It is clear that many people who saw the Afghan sword did not consider them to be much more than a varient of the tulwar, it was only later that it was given its own name. 


Catalogue of the Anthropological Collection Lent by Colonel Lane Fox for Exhibition in the Bethnal Green Branch of the South Kensington Museum, June 1874, Volume 1, G.E. Eyre, 1874.

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## L. Braden

When does a knife become a sword or, more aptly, sword knife? According to Fox's list, some of the weapons in his collection must have qualified as sword knives. The peshqabz, for example, is of various lengths. And incidentally, Bellew's dictionary of Pashto equates the charah ("a long knife") with the Indian chhura (choora). But what's in a word? It can mean different things to different people! That's why I'm glad that you pre-empted me in providing the Fox quotation re name changes and differences.

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## eric t

> When does a knife become a sword or, more aptly, sword knife? According to Fox's list, some of the weapons in his collection must have qualified as sword knives. The peshqabz, for example, is of various lengths. And incidentally, Bellew's dictionary of Pashto equates the charah ("a long knife") with the Indian chhura (choora). But what's in a word? It can mean different things to different people! That's why I'm glad that you pre-empted me in providing the Fox quotation re name changes and differences.


If anything resembles a sword it is the khyber knife, here is a great description from 1906.

Baily's Magazine of Sports & Pastimes, Volume 85, Baily bros., 1906.

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## L. Braden

Indeed! I first read this, as well as other accounts, in "Swordsmen of the British Empire", which contains the most comprehensive info on these and other sword knives.

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## Gene Wilkinson

Some great research there gentlemen. 
On the Khyber Knife, the quotes are often right on the mark. These are usually not exactly a 'knightly' weapon. They are often crudely made and even when they are relatively well finished, the blades are to say the least a bit of a mixed bag.
The steel in even second half 19thc ones is often a very basic crucible (wootz) steel, but the steel is often inconsistently heat treated with areas showing (after an etch) a crystalline structure while areas show the structure heated to the point where the structure has been 'burned' out. 
The 'T' spine on the Khyber knife, I think can be a bit misleading, as it can seem to suggest a stabbing weapon.
These are more a hack and slay type affair, as is suggested by the excellent information provided above. The T-spine is simply (IMHO) to add strength and to try and prevent an often poorly tempered blade from buckling.
They do (in my limited experience) have a rather crude differential tempering with a hard edge on the blade. Damage can sometimes be seen in the form of cracks in the cutting edge.
They also sometimes show in both mono and crucible steel examples, crude lamination and clear lamination flaws.

I would however add that their users were also occasionally mounted and these would be rather suited for a good hack from horseback. Certainly as much as many other weapons used by mounted combatants in that area of the world.
As to their being called a 'knife' even 'large knife'? Yes they are really a sword IMHO.
But again we get too hung up on definitions. It's a big butchers knife.
Also, don't forget that there are examples with a  guard.

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## Gene Wilkinson

Getting back to the Choora (as we know it today).
Some more indications of the 20thc date.
The hilt scales are often made of composite/celluloids/early plastics etc. Also they are often etched to emulate wootz.
To show an example of this with a good indication of age, here is one with a faux wootz blade of etched mono steel. It also has hilt scales made from a kind of artificial 'ivorine' that was popular around the mid 20thc and eventually turned a characteristic orange with age.

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## eric t

> Getting back to the Choora (as we know it today).
> Some more indications of the 20thc date.
> The hilt scales are often made of composite/celluloids/early plastics etc. Also they are often etched to emulate wootz.
> To show an example of this with a good indication of age, here is one with a faux wootz blade of etched mono steel. It also has hilt scales made from a kind of artificial 'ivorine' that was popular around the mid 20thc and eventually turned a characteristic orange with age.


Gene, there are examples of choora with wootz blades and ivory grips, I think you can find many types of swords/knifes/daggers that have lower quality blades/grips and were made rather recently. I am not sure if this is a good indication as to the age of a particular type of weapon, I think you have to look at the better examples and see if they look to be recently made. As far as authentic wootz steel goes I do not think that was a recently made item.


Here is an example.




> This Choora knife is a typical example from the second half of the 19th century and it is coming from the Khayber pass area between India and Afghanistan. It was carried by the Mahsud people residing in this area. The blade is 8 inches long with the usual T back and reinforced edge forged from fine Indian wootz (Damascus) steel. The grips are made of sectors of elephant ivory riveted to the tang with four rivets. Four small metal bells are attached to the pommel top. The bolster and the hilt strap are engraved white metal painted red orange and black. The scabbard is wood, covered with tooled leather and mounted with finely chased big locket and scabbard band. Total length in scabbard 12 1/2 inches. Very good condition. All parts are old and original. Choora daggers with Wootz blade are quite scarce.

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## Gene Wilkinson

> Gene, there are examples of choora with wootz blades and ivory grips, I think you can find many types of swords/knifes/daggers that have lower quality blades/grips and were made rather recently. I am not sure if this is a good indication as to the age of a particular type of weapon, I think you have to look at the better examples and see if they look to be recently made. As far as authentic wootz steel goes I do not think that was a recently made item.
> 
> 
> Here is an example.


Hi Eric,
'Second half 19th century'? So would that be closer to 1851 or 1899?
And there are also relatively late 'Khyber Knives' with crucible steel blades, probably from around the turn of the last century, perhaps even into it. 
There are as you say rather good quality Choora, as shown in the earlier part of the thread and your last example. 
You can't help but look at the hilts with their garish painted decoration and it's hard to imagine that the paint has withstood 165 years...... Now say that these do date from around 1900 ish. Perhaps re-dressed? Perhaps re-purposed blades... All things are possible.
But they do seem, as a form, to be a later rather than earlier creation. Which would explain why so few are 'better' and so many are good quality but imitation.
And of course we don't have any hard proof of mid 19th century examples beyond a shared word that means 'large knife'?

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## eric t

> Hi Eric,
> 'Second half 19th century'? So would that be closer to 1851 or 1899?
> And there are also relatively late 'Khyber Knives' with crucible steel blades, probably from around the turn of the last century, perhaps even into it. 
> There are as you say rather good quality Choora, as shown in the earlier part of the thread and your last example. 
> You can't help but look at the hilts with their garish painted decoration and it's hard to imagine that the paint has withstood 165 years...... Now say that these do date from around 1900 ish. Perhaps re-dressed? Perhaps re-purposed blades... All things are possible.
> But they do seem, as a form, to be a later rather than earlier creation. Which would explain why so few are 'better' and so many are good quality but imitation.
> And of course we don't have any hard proof of mid 19th century examples beyond a shared word that means 'large knife'?


Gene, choora are sort of a mystery, they seem to have just popped up, most do look to be fairly modern and not exceptional. I would not be surprised to find out that they were originally a womans knife (whats with the bells and paint on some examples?).

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## Dave Wally

Holy smoke! I didn't think I'd get quite so comprehensive a tutorial on this style of knife! Knowledgeable chaps all!! I now know all there is to know (so far) about Chooras, Pesh Kabz etc..... Many thanks!!

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## Gene Wilkinson

> Gene, choora are sort of a mystery, they seem to have just popped up, most do look to be fairly modern and not exceptional. I would not be surprised to find out that they were originally a womans knife (whats with the bells and paint on some examples?).


That's a really interesting idea. i have no knowledge of women's role in afghan society at that time.

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## Gene Wilkinson

There are a lot of photographs from the end of the 19thc/early 20thc Afghan conflicts. 
Well... allegedly.

Some seem to show Karud. This first one is tantalizing as it just 'might' show a choora on the floor in front of the lad on the right side. Apart from that I can see one obvious karud, one likely karud and one possible pesh-kabz.

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## Gene Wilkinson

Here are a bunch of war spoils:

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## Gene Wilkinson

Now here is something interesting. An early photo that does seem to show a Choora.
Anyone want to guess that date based on the guns?

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## Gene Wilkinson

> Holy smoke! I didn't think I'd get quite so comprehensive a tutorial on this style of knife! Knowledgeable chaps all!! I now know all there is to know (so far) about Chooras, Pesh Kabz etc..... Many thanks!!


Hi Dave, 
these are a really interesting field of discussion. I hope you like your Choora!

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## eric t

> Now here is something interesting. An early photo that does seem to show a Choora.
> Anyone want to guess that date based on the guns?


Mahsuds in Waziristan, 1920 (c).

Photograph, India, North West Frontier, 1920 (c).

The Mahsuds were Pathan tribesmen who inhabited Waziristan. They were probably the most formidable fighters on the frontier. Highly mobile, able to live off the most meagre rations, and fine shots, they were perfectly adapted to their mountainous homeland. Fiercely independent, they had honed their fighting skills by years of raiding the settled areas to the east, along the Indus, and by attacking the trading caravans that travelled to and from Afghanistan. In 1919 their fighting strength was estimated at over 11,000 warriors. Only the most experienced and well-trained British and Indian units could match the Mahsud in frontier fighting.

From an album of 65 photographs compiled by Major General W M Kirke, Waziristan, North West Frontier (1920-1937). National Army Museum, Study collection

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## eric t

> There are a lot of photographs from the end of the 19thc/early 20thc Afghan conflicts. 
> Well... allegedly.
> 
> Some seem to show Karud. This first one is tantalizing as it just 'might' show a choora on the floor in front of the lad on the right side. Apart from that I can see one obvious karud, one likely karud and one possible pesh-kabz.


Portrait of Afghan chiefs probably taken at Kabul, Afghanistan, by John Burke in 1879-80. Burke was the most intrepid of all the photographers active in Victorian India. He travelled widely in the sub-continent but is best known for his work pertaining to the Second Afghan War (1878-80). In this two-year campaign, he worked steadily in the hostile environment of Afghanistan and the North West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan), recording the military events, the topography and the people of the region in which the strategies of the Great Game (concerning the Anglo-Russian territorial rivalry) were played out. Burke also photographed a number of the darbars or meetings that took place between the British leaders and Afghan chiefs which led to the uneasy peace treaties characteristic of the campaign. This album is full of images taken during the occupation of Kabul in the later phase of the war, October 1879. British Library.

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## eric t

> Here are a bunch of war spoils:


(Those khyber knives look huge!!)


Afghan Trophies, Peiwar Kotal

This photograph of a pile of military "trophies" after the Battle of Peiwar Kotal in November 1878 is from an album of rare historical photographs depicting people and places associated with the Second Anglo-Afghan War. Peiwar Kotal was the site of a battle in late 1878, between British forces under Sir Frederick Roberts (1832–1914), who outmaneuvered Afghan forces under an unknown commander. The result was a British victory and seizure of the Peiwar Kotal Pass. A young boy is perched atop the pile; he leans against a huge bass drum and sits on a fur-lined sheepskin coat, called a poostin in Dari. He is surrounded by an assortment of military items that were abandoned during the battle or removed from the bodies of slain soldiers. They include swords and scimitars of both British and Afghan design, scabbards, rifles, and a helmet in the center. 

The Second Anglo-Afghan War began in November 1878 when Great Britain, fearful of what it saw as growing Russian influence in Afghanistan, invaded the country from British India. The first phase of the war ended in May 1879 with the Treaty of Gandamak, which permitted the Afghans to maintain internal sovereignty but forced them to cede control over their foreign policy to the British. Fighting resumed in September 1879, after an anti-British uprising in Kabul, and finally concluded in September 1880 with the decisive Battle of Kandahar. 

The album includes portraits of British and Afghan leaders and military personnel, portraits of ordinary Afghan people, and depictions of British military camps and activities, structures, landscapes, and cities and towns. The sites shown are all located within the borders of present-day Afghanistan or Pakistan (a part of British India at the time). About a third of the photographs were taken by John Burke (circa 1843–1900), another third by Sir Benjamin Simpson (1831–1923), and the remainder by several other photographers. Some of the photographs are unattributed. The album possibly was compiled by a member of the British Indian government, but this has not been confirmed. How it came to the Library of Congress is not known.

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage...han1879page.db

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## Gene Wilkinson

Hi Eric,
Good job on the big versions of the pictures and the descriptions, excellent research  :Smilie: 
Strangely, those very same fur lined Afghan coats were still in fashion when I was a kid! Often with a little more visible fur/wool at the cuffs and edges! Bit of a throw-over from the 60s hippy era.
Interesting to see just how little they'd changed from the versions worn by fighters in the late 19thc!!!
In fact a tatty old 60s/70s one would possibly make a good base for a mannequin display of 19thc Afghan militaria!!

I notice that these photos seem to all pre-date the time when photographers would say 'SMILE' before clicking the shutter  :Wink: 

The pile of spoils is interesting not only for the coats and as you point out the large Khybers but also the belts with tools.
I'm sure many of us have one of those, but it's interesting to see a few in that context.
Also I notice the similarity in the decoration of all the belts/pouches and the rifles. 
Also do you notice that there are no small knives in the selection. Medium and large Khybers and many small items, even down to small powder flasks and bamboo powder measures but no daggers?

Now we know that these men did carry lots of small items, so where are the knifes?
Were they not carrying them due to the nature of their expectations for this battle? Was it a tribal/regional tradition?

Now, when we look at the 1920's photo where we can see a Choora, the emphasis is clearly on the firearms rather than the edged weapons.
In your picture we seem to be able to see a dagger being held by the chap in the foreground. Perhaps a second Choora?
Did the Choora develop after the Anglo-Afghan wars once cartridge loaders were replacing muzzle loaders and the large Khyber knives and swords in general were less important equipment as a sort of replacement?
I know that as we previously discussed, the accepted view is that these are ring-splitters, but as I said on page 1, I always just think of them as general light armour piercing. Within that description I'd include heavy clothing and uniforms! If you were going to choose a knife to pierce several layers of cotton/felt/leather/sheepskin, can you think of a better knife to choose?

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## eric t

A couple of images showing the large type of karud dagger being worn and a very similar example from the recent Auctions Imperial auction.










> Afghan karud dagger, massive example with characteristic bone grips. The well-wrought blade with T-back and raised, chamfered edge, forged of fine Persian Kara Taban black wootz damascus steel. In its wooden scabbard with leather covering and iron chape with bead finial. Late 18th century. Overall length 54.6cm / 21 in.

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## eric t

> Now here is something interesting. An early photo that does seem to show a Choora.
> Anyone want to guess that date based on the guns?

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