Sosun Patta
Full Description:
A lily leaf (sosun patta) sword with a slender iron hilt in the Punjabi style. The surface is decorated in gold koftagri with what looks like gold stars but is more likely stylised flowers. A knuckle guard gracefully extends from the quillon block and culminates in a lotus bud. The elegant re-curved T-section blade is of the highest quality wootz or jahuar steel. This type of steel is sometimes referred to as kara-taban, a Persian term that translates as ‘brilliant black’. The edge of the sword is polished bright, leaving the main surface on both sides of the blade showcasing a beautiful silvery black pattern.
The modern wooden scabbard is covered in black and gold brocade silk and is fitted with a custom-made polished brass chape.
Another interesting example of this type of sword is housed at the Wallace Collection in London, with a Gurmukhi inscription on the inside of the knuckle guard that reads: ‘may Guru Nanak protect Guru Sadhu Singh’.1 Sadhu Singh (d. 1861) was a prominent member of the Sodhi clan and a direct descendant of the fourth Sikh Guru, Ram Das (1534–81), who enjoyed the patronage of Ranjit Singh, ruler of the Sikh Empire (r.1799–1839).2
Provenance
Private UK collection
References
1Personal correspondence with Arthur Bijl (original reading by P.Singh)
2Singh Madra and Singh, The Golden Temple of Amritsar: Reflections of the Past (1808-1959), 2017, p. 108.