Hyderabad: A rare ‘snake-like 14th-century sword’ that was sold or gifted to a British Army General by a top Nizam official more than 115 years ago is likely to be returned to the Indian city of Hyderabad.
This sword is among the seven rare items that Glasgow Life is going to return to India. Glasgow Life manages the Kelvingrove Art Gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. The Indian High Commissioner to the UK signed an agreement with the museum authorities on August 19, which is the first time that rare items from a UK museum will be returned to India.
According to the BBC report, this sword was stolen from the Nizam of Hyderabad’s collection in 1905. Later, this sword was sold to British General Sir Archibald Hunter, who was the Commander-in-Chief. It is said that this sword was bought from the then Prime Minister of Hyderabad State, Maharaja Kishan Prasad.
The Glasgow Museum reports that Sir Hunter’s nephew gifted the sword to the gallery in 1978. Meanwhile, the director of the famous Salarjung Museum in Hyderabad, A. Nagendra Reddy, said that it is highly possible that this sword will reach Hyderabad, because the original homeland of this sword is Hyderabad.
He said that the design of this sword is Indo-Iranian and its shape is like a snake. It has serrated edges and is engraved with elephant and tiger motifs on the armor dated 1350 AD.
According to Glasgow Museum documents, Mir Mehboob Ali Khan (1896-1911), the sixth Nizam Nawab of Hyderabad, kept this sword for display in the royal court held in Delhi in 1903 during the coronation of British King Edward VII and Queen Alexander. It is not known how this sword reached Maharaj Kishan Prasad.
