Yemen souvenirs

I’ve been thinking about buying some real souvenirs from this place. Not the chintzy made for tourists stuff, but actual cultural artifacts. I have some of the handmade clothing from Zabeed and now I’m looking for something else. The obvious thing would be to get a Jambiya, the curved dagger that is worn by men here. I might get one, but I object to them on several different levels. The first one is that they aren’t actual knives at all. There is a blade, but it is a complete afterthought. They are typically flimsy, Indian made things that look like blades but can’t hold a very good edge. Even if they could, the shape of the blade makes it all but useless. All of the value is in the handle. A Jambiya is purely for looks and status, nothing else. In that vein, a friend of mine once commented on how funny it was that some men throw their jacket over the handle of their knife (it is always worn in the front, right in the center) making it look as though they are walking around with giant erections. “They wish” was my only comment but it occurred to me that that is the entire purpose of the Jambiya, a mine is bigger than yours because I have more status… The whole thing is slightly repugnant,,,

Then there’s the cost. You can buy ones made for tourists for the equivalent of 15 or 20 bucks. Those are made in India mostly and to those of us in the country for any length of time, they look silly. The best ones to get are the older ones. Black rhino horn handles are the most desirable and most expensive. I find them incredibly dull, if I were to get one, I would get an older one with a metal handle. These are not worn by people with “high” status like sheiks or judges, but they are much nicer looking. They usually have all sorts of elaborate metal work done to them and they look quite lovely. The same goes for the scabbard. Good versions of these will run between $300-$1200 depending on who the previous owner was, how old it is, and the level of craftsmanship involved. The new ones are typically made of bone, but if I were to get a new one, I would get one with an agate handle. I’m not sure how much they cost…

I might get a jambiya, nothing says “Yemen” quite as much as one. I am leaning more towards picking up some art. There are several galleries in the main souk and there are some decent things in there. I was looking at some prints, they run about $50 a piece unframed. Some of them are quite striking, and they are about 16×20 inches, so it’s a lot of bang for the buck. Today I saw some really interesting mixed media images. They are original pieces, not prints. They are also quite “precious” as they are around 5×7 inches. Framed, they are going for $200 a piece. I’m torn, I like all of the things I’ve mentioned, but I could only get one of the original pieces I think. On the other hand, for the same amount of money I could have 4 prints… Hmmm. Decisions decisions. Being small has the advantage of being easy to get home… I’ll figure it out pretty soon I think.

Isaac