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Indian, India Possibly Sri Lanka

Dagger (Khanjar), 1500s-1600s

Now On View

Description

Maker

  • Unknown

Culture

Indian

Title

Dagger (Khanjar)

Year

1500s-1600s

Medium

Steel and ivory

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • steel,
  • ivory

Dimensions

30.8 x 6.8 x 3.8 cm (12 1/8 x 2 11/16 x 1 1/2 inches)

Place

India; Possibly; Sri Lanka; India

Type

  • Fashion,
  • Arms and Armor

Credit

Gift of Nancy Angier

Object Number

83.111

Projects & Publications

Publications

Glimpses of Grandeur

Courtly Arts of the Later Islamic Empires

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Glimpses of Grandeur

September 24 - December 26, 1999

A Decade of Collecting (Painting and Sculpture; Prints, Drawings, and Photographs)

June 26 - September 20, 1987

A Decade of Collecting (Costume and Textiles)

July 17 - September 6, 1987

Asian Art Galleries

With its graceful curved blade and carved hilt, this Indian dagger, known as a khanjar, was likely owned and worn by someone of high rank. Its elaborately sculpted stained-ivory handle ends with the head of a yali, a lion-like creature of Hindu mythology. The yali’s tongue extends to lick the small feline cub at the end of the steel knuckle guard. Believed to have protective powers, the yali might have served as a talisman for its wearer.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Dagger (Khanjar) with the accession number of 83.111. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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