Dagger with Gem-set Hilt and Scabbard

Daggers and swords from the Mughal period often had highly-decorated hilts. They were worn with precious costumes, often tucked into belts or sashes (patkas) for public audiences or courtly events. This dagger shows the excellent work of metalworkers, enamellers and jewellers. It has a slightly recurved double-edged blade of watered steel with an engraved decoration along the median ridge and a gem-set hilt. Composed of a solid core, probably iron, the hilt was gilded and decorated with a ruby-red enameling and was then inlaid entirely with diamonds and emeralds using the kundan technique. This technique, in which gemstones were set into pure 24-carat gold (kundan) foil and then set directly into enamelled or engraved gem materials, became extremely popular during the Mughal and the Deccan Sultanates periods.