#yatagan

Yatagans

19th century, Epirus, gold-plated silver, 70.5 cm [x]

late 18th-early 19th century, silver, 69 cm [x]

1823, silver, 72 cm [x]

19th century, Crete, silver, 74 cm [x]

19th century, silver and coral, 88.5 cm [x]

19th century, Peloponnese, silver, gold, and and niello, inscription "ΓΕΩΡΓΙC ΔΗΜΗΤΡΙC ΓΟΥΡΓΑΡΙΣ", 49 cm [x]

Sword or Yatagan. Türkiye, Ottoman Empire. 1815 CE.

Elegant silver mounted yatagan, Turkey, dated 1818

Gold decorated yatagan commissioned for Sultan Bayezid III, Ottoman Empire, 1481-1512 AD

One of the biggest misconceptions in Romanian textbooks and films is that the Ottomans' favorite weapon was a curved sword called a yataghan.

The only truth in this statement is that the weapons in question were indeed curved and made of metal. Beyond that, we are dealing with two entirely different white weapons used in two very distinct historical periods.

The yataghan (yatağan in Ottoman pronunciation) was a type of larger knife, usually slightly curved, with a reinforced back and an inner edge. The yataghan appeared out of nowhere around the end of the 17th century. Experts are still debating its exact origins.

The curved sword used by the Ottomans during the time of Vlad the Impaler and Stephen the Great was called a kılıç, had an outer edge, and was only slightly curved at first. It became more and more curved towards the 19th century when it took on the form it has remained known for.

In addition to the kılıç, its Persian equivalent, the şamşir, was also used, both made of Damascus steel.