Sabers of the Kazakh warriors from the collection of the Russian museum of ethnography

The article is focused on three sabers from the collection of the Russian Museum of Ethnography (REM) in St. Petersburg which correlate with the complex of arms of Kazakhs (the 19 th century). The study of museum documentation allowed us to establish that the two of them (8761-16424 а,б; 8761-13755 а,б) were the exhibits from the Moscow Ethnographic exhibition in 1867. The first saber, fitted with a handle made of horn, comes from the territory of Middle or Great jüz. It is highly probable, that this saber was the gift of Genghis Valikhanov (who was the grandson of the famous Ablay Khan, the son of the last khan of the Middle jüz – Valikhan, and the father of the outstanding researcher, officer and traveler – Shokan Valikhanov). The second saber, with a handle made of walrus ivory, comes from the West Kazakhstan. The third saber (8763-624 а,б) was transferred from the Central Museum of Kazakhstan in 1939. After analyzing of the construction and the system of decor, it was found that the first two sabers (8761-16424 а,б; 8761-13755 а,б) represent a variant of «Shamshir» of West Asia type. The blade of the saber 8761-16424 is stamped with the North Caucasian mark «Basalai». However this blade (as well as the handle and the scabbard) was most likely made by Iranian or Central Asian armorer, and the famous mark was stamped with a view to increase the value of the weapon. The saber 8763-624 combines the blade of «shamshir type» and the handle with the finial in the shape of a stylized eagle's head. The saber 8761-13755 was made by Iranian and the saber 8763-624 – by Iranian or Central Asian armorers. Swordbelts of all three sabers were made by Kazakh or Uzbek masters. Sabers from the collection of REM may be dated back to the second half of the 18 th – the middle the 19 th century. They clearly illustrate the written sources which tell about the prevalence of imported – Iranian and Central Asian – products in the complex of long-bladed arms of Kazakhs in the 18 th – 19 th centuries.