The blade of the dagger is purest Damascene work, the handle of fossilized ivory.

On the back of the blade is engraved, in letters of inlaid gold, in Arabic characters-- "There is one God! He is Eternal!" "Victory is nigh, O true believer!" Connoisseurs say that the dagger is over a hundred years old.

After quite an hour's haggling (during which our departure was delayed, much to Gerome's disgust), I managed to secure it for L9 English money, although the Bakhtiari assured me that he had already sworn "by his two wives" never to part with it.

I have since been offered four times the amount by a good judge of Eastern weapons.
A second pass, the Kotal Doktar, lay between us and Bushire.

Though steep and slippery in places, the path is well protected, and there are no boulders to bar the way.