Topkapı Dagger

The dagger was commissioned by the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud I (r. 1730–54) as a peace offering to the Shah of Iran, Nadir Shah (r. 1736-47). It was among several valuable gifts that was carried by Ahmad Pasha Kesrieli, accompanied by 1,000 retainers.[2] As the embassy traveled en route to the border of Persia, the Ottoman ambassadors learned of the assassination of the Shah (20 June 1747) and returned back to Istanbul with the dagger.[3][2][4] It is interesting to note that on the eve of his death, Nadir Shah dispatched an assemblage of splendid gifts for Mahmud I, the Ottoman sultan, including pearls from the Persian Gulf, a Mughal throne bedecked with jewels, and two dancing Mughal elephants, thus the gift-exchange was only one-sided. [2]

The dagger is housed in the Imperial Treasury, located in the Third Court of the Topkapı Palace in Istanbul, Türkiye.

The dagger is adorned with many smaller-sized diamonds, while three large Colombian emeralds are set into the hilt.[5][6]The pommel of the dagger has an English watch embedded.[7] [6]

For Islam, the color green is traditionally considered the color of the Prophet Mohammed and paradise.[7] Thus, the inclusion of emeralds on gifts to/from Islamic rulers had added significance, since the stone was imbued with a sacredness.[7] Moreover, gifts with emeralds often indicated the wealth, power, and magnificence of the giver.[7] Large emeralds, such as those found on the Topkapı dagger, were mined in the far away lands of the New Kingdom of Granada (now Colombia, near the town Muzo), further adding notions of otherworldliness and novelty.[7] These large and deeply-colored green emeralds had been discovered by the Europeans after Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada's expedition and subsequent conquest of the region in the 1530s.[7] The emeralds in the Topkapı dagger exuded exoticism and the opulence of court life in Islamic empires such as Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals.[7]

The Topkapı Dagger is one of the most famous objects in the collection of the Topkapı Palace Treasury.[8] The dagger was the main theme of Jules Dassin’s 1964 comedic film Topkapı/Topkapi, in which it became the desired object of the main character, played by Melina Mercouri. She, along with a group of "world-class" jewelry thieves, plot to steal the dagger from the Topkapı Palace.[9]