МАЭ № 7074-9/1

Dagger

Arabs of Yemen

late 19th - early 20th centuries

steel, bone, copper, tinned iron, paint

length of blade 21.7; length of handle 10.1

Specific curved dagger, common for northern Yemen, is indispensable attribute of a real man’s wear. Being used in art of war in the past, the dagger now has preserved symbolic function meaning honour and strength. Father present a dagger to son, to show that a boy became a real man. It is also used in different rites: weddings, dances.

Ethnography of South and South-West Asia