Moroccan koummya Dagger _Components and History .

Moroccan Koummya Dagger For Sale

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The components of Traditional Moroccan Koummya Dagger

The "kummya " or moroccan koummya dagger is considered one of the most important antiques that adorn men in different regions of Morocco. The manufacture of this jewelery today suffers from many problems mainly related to the low demand for it, in addition to the abandonment of most families from acquiring it after it was one of the necessary means that symbolize masculinity. The groom on his wedding day from the side of his family is evidence that he entered the world of virility, and became responsible for his young family.

Traditional Moroccan koummya Dagger

This piece consists of three pieces. The first is called the "fist", which is the hand of the" moroccan koummya dagger" or the knife, and it is usually made of wood. Thearwood is chosen for it in this case, while the acacia wood, which is one of the finest types of wood, has disappeared, as it can be. That this fist was made of bone, ivory, and the horn of a deer, and these two became rare, and the fourth type would be made of pure silver.

The "fist" consists of three parts, which the traditional craftsman carefully prepares on a wooden instrument called "the hammar". The fist consists of the crown, which is in the form of a full cross, and below it there is what is termed "the sabbat", which is the place where the hand is held, and directly below it is Create an opening where the dagger enters and it is called “Al-Tashura”.

And in the lower part of the quantity or the dagger is what is usually termed "joi", which is subject to precise standards that the traditional craftsman is keen to respect. It begins by collecting two pure silver caskets called in the language of the teachers "SIGAT" by using welding that is usually of copper, and the reason, according to the teachers, It is that copper is durable, and in this case it is required that the amount used does not exceed one-third of the amount of silver that is used to make the casing. After collecting the legs, the teacher passes to the next stage, which is the completion of the upper part of the casing with engineering and botanical innovations called “superposition”, which is a drilling machine called “ The inscription, which is subject to a mathematical feature, where numbers 2 and 4 or 8 are drawn with a machine called “the bear”, and these upper inscriptions on the cover are concluded by taking out the so-called “ears”, which are two pieces of silver whose task is to carry the “quantity”, through which a thread enters them. It is called "Majdool", and at the bottom of the cover we always find a small dome of pure silver called "Akerni".

Vintage Moroccan koummya Dagger

With regard to the knife that is inside the quantity, it is made either of silver or iron, and is often subject to the buyer's taste, and about the rope with which it is carried, it has some specifications that make it special, as it is usually made of silk, and with the passage of time and the cost of raw materials, So what is widespread in the market today is the mujdool made of "Sabra" strings. In Tiznit, for example, there is a "teacher" who specializes in carrying out these ropes, and he visits teachers and shop owners once a week to take orders and prepare them within a week.

How are artisanal Moroccan Koummya Dagger or Moroccan knife Koummya made.

This industry is considered one of the crafts that need skill and precision, and it is aimed especially at men who attach great importance to daggers, and for them they are like jewelry for women. It gives its owner the gift and dignity, as it symbolizes power and prestigious status within Amazigh circles and is also used for self-defense against any near danger that might threaten a person in his continuous movement, whether it is a predator or bandit. The poor and the common people make it of iron and copper, and the craftsmen excelled in decorating it and inlaid it with splendid carvings and exquisite decorations. These daggers were known locally by its Amazigh name "Kumait", and it was used for decoration. It is attached to a red silk thread, which is rather thick and long. It is placed on the right shoulder to hang on the left leg. Men wear it in the Ahwash dance. And this habit continues to this day, as those who did not carry this Moroccan Koummya Daggercould not enter the periphery.

Antique Berber Moroccan koummya Dagger

Due to the importance of these daggers among the local population, the craftsmen worked to ensure that they are of the highest level of precision and beauty. And here is the role of innovation in the manufacture and the use of all possible means to entice the consumer. As for the process of crafting them, it is very similar to the process of crafting women's jewelery. Moroccan Koummya Dagger For Sale

Flash history about Moroccan Koummya Dagger.

In the southern Moroccan region, fingers soften the metal to make "Moroccan Daggers", embodying the inherited profession that has turned into a bridge linking the past with the present, and becoming a source of livelihood for its owners, an adornment for men in this society, and a gift to friends and visitors from abroad.

Moroccan koummya dagger passes through different stages, after designing and cutting comes the printing phase (adornment) that reflects the taste and awareness of the master (the maker), and this matter differs from one to another, and from one dagger to another.

In the past, Moroccan dagger was of great value in daily life, and it was used on occasions such as weddings and religious and national holidays, and also in self-defense in the absence of order and security, but with the development that life has known, it is now used as an adornment and is presented in gifts as a token of love and appreciation for the guest. Which reflects the value of this cultural heritage.

Moroccan dagger has many connotations, especially in the inscriptions that are found in it. Each inscription it contains suggests a certain meaning among the inhabitants of the "Makkona" castle and the Dades Basin in general, and combines several symbols inspired by the surroundings in which it is made.

In view of the scarcity of historical sources, the oral narratives of a group of craftsmen indicate that this industry was taught by the people of the region from the Jews who once inhabited the area in the “Tilit Malah” in the Dades Basin before their final departure to Palestine, and upon the departure of these Jews, few of them remained among those who learned this The craft, and they taught it to their children and preserved it generation after generation.

The manufacture of Moroccan koummya daggers is an authentic heritage that has been left by the ancestors, and the craftsmen and craftsmen in the region work to preserve and develop it according to the requirements of the times and the needs of customers. Despite the simplicity of the means with which al-Sanea operates in the region, he was able to resist. "

Moroccan dagger industry started in the southern region of the Atlas Mountains in Morocco between 1950 and 1960, and that it replaced a group of crafts that ceased to exist - or shrunk - such as blacksmithing, and that the youth of this region learned the industry from their parents and developed year after year in an organized framework.

The current generation seeks to preserve this legacy, by learning it gradually, as the learner begins to witness, learn to employ work tools, and begins with simple matters, and then moves after mastery to the most difficult stages, within family gatherings, which helped increase the number of craftsmen in the region To about three hundred craftsmen.

Moroccan koummya dagger from ouarzazate

Moroccan koummya dagger industry goes through several stages, and the manufacturer begins with the design phase on the metal according to the chosen color, determines the measurements he wants, and forms the inscriptions using a sharp tool according to the taste of the manufacturer, then passes to the decorating stage in which the manufacturer puts the inscriptions on the pieces, then the folding stage, then gluing The pieces decorated by welding, then the stage of removing impurities, then the installation, and finally the polishing stage until the dagger acquires a bright color, and is ready for display, and then sale.

This craft shows the craftsman’s ingenuity and skill, and points to some cultural peculiarities, and what it carries in design, engraving and creativity, which highlights the aesthetic taste in creating the dagger as a masterpiece that shows the characteristics that abound in the environment, society, customs and traditions in the the Dades Basin."

The craftsmen developed the craft of Moroccan daggers according to the requirements of the era, and other types appeared in various forms, including straight and twisted, and using various metals, reaching more than 12 types, and at the same time the craftsmen preserved the ancient traditional types due to their value and originality.

The craftsmen use in a castle composed of various materials according to customers' requests, including wood of all kinds, cow and camel bones, deer and rhino horns as handles for Moroccan daggers, metals of different colors, and they employ iron and steel, and are Currently focusing on a mineral called "Inox" due to its resistivity in Wet areas.

Moroccan Koummya Dagger For Sale