Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 15. (Budapest, 1995)
GERELYES Ibolya: Oszmán-török dísztőrök az Esterházy-gyűjteményből
IBOLYA GERELYES OTTOMAN-TURKISH CEREMONIAL DAGGERS FROM THE ESTERHÁZY COLLECTION In the inventory of the Esterházy treasury at Fraknó drawn up between 1721 and 1725, the following item is mentioned under "almárium Sub Numéris 5 et 6 Nr 8": Two Turkish knifes in scabbard of pure gold, ornamented with rubies and turquoises." 1 The two daggers have been in the Esterházy Collection of the Budapest Museum of Applied Arts since 1923. 2 The family information that has come down to us and the testimony of seventeenth-century inventories seem to prove that the above two objects travelled a long way from the OttomanTurkish goldsmith's workshop in Constantinople where they were made before reaching Hungary, namely the treasury of Gábor Bethlen, prince of Transylvania (1613-1629). From there they wandered further from family to family as gifts, inheritance or dowry until finally, in 1655, with the marriage of Orsolya and Pál Esterházy, they became part of the Fraknó treasury 3 . The handle, hand-guard and scabbard of one dagger are made of embossed, punched and chased gilt silver. 4 The front of the scabbard is covered with embossed and chased lotus flowers, sedge leaves and rosettes, on a punched background. Three rows of alternating rubies and emeralds protrude from the above background, placed in applique settings so as to form eight-petalled rosettes. In the middle row, two of the rubies and one of the emeralds have been replaced. The scabbard ends in a double, fluted cone, with a turquoise at the end (111. 1). The back of the scabbard is covered with embossed lotus flowers, sedge leaves and foliage slightly protruding from the punched background. The basic foliage of the decoration is arranged in oval cartouches or semi-cartuches. The upper third of the scabbard is supplied with a hanger ring (111. 2). The curved hand-guard of the dagger is made of pressed and embossed gilt silver. The usual, curving dragon heads are stylized and abstract, depicting two bending leaves and foliage similar to those on the scabbard front, slightly protruding from the punched background. The middle of the hand-guard is decorated with a turquoise, set in a protruding, appliqué eightpetalled rosette. To the right there is a rectangular emerald, the one on the left is missing. There are three rubies in rows below and above the middle rosette, in similar settings. The curved stems are also decorated with rubies, with two missing on the left. The back and the sides of the hand-guard are decorated with motifs identical to those on the back of the scabbard, the only difference is that on the back the oval cartouches are replaced by eight-lobed ones. The hilt of the dagger is gilt-silver, pressed and embossed, the back and the front are identical. The oval cartouches of foliage end in tips, protruding slightly from the punched background. The spaces are filled with embossed lotus flowers, sedge leaves and rosette-shaped jewel settings. In contrast to the appliqué settings on the scabbard and the hand-guard, those on the hilt do not protrude from the background, except for the upper collars holding the jewels. The jewels themselves are rubies, and alternating emeralds and turquoises. Some show clear evidence of later, unskilled replacement.
