Khandjar India 18th, Wootz Blade, Ivory Handle

This weapon belongs to the great family of Khandjars. It  comes from India. Due to the double curvature of its blade, it can be classified as a "para-i-tutti".
It dates from the Mughal period (1526-1857) and more precisely from the mid-18th century. This dating is related to the wootz blade, the gold damascene patterns, the ivory handle and the decorative motif chosen for it. Indeed the sculpture of the handle shows us a mythical animal (dragon?) swallowing a cow.
BLADE: it is a double-curvature, single-edged blade, made of “Wootz” steel. The legendary wootz steel, or "crystallization damascus" was extremely expensive and complex to produce. Prices were sometimes exorbitant, 3 times the price of gold or 10 to 30 times the price of silver! The secret of making wootz was lost at the end of the 17th century, but a number of metal ingots survived, which could be forged later.
This "crystallization damascus"(or "wtared steel" ) should not be confused with "wrought damascus", obtained by lamination of sometimes different steels.
The back of the blade shows a series of semi-circular notches which can be used to tear clothing when of blade penetration.
Finally, the tip of the blade shows a clear diamond-shaped thickening intended to break the chain mail rings. This type of tip reinforcement is only found on old blades.
Length of the blade = 18 cm, width near the handle 2.6 cm, thickness near the handle = 4 mm
HILT : The junction with the base of the blade is ensured by an iron part richly damascened with gold. The decorative motifs represent abundant foliage.
The handle itself is made of ivory, it ends with an animal head which could be a kind of crocodile, but which is in any case a predator. In its sharp-toothed mouth a cow's head that it is swallowing protrudes. Perhaps we can see in this representation a symbol of Islam conquering Hinduism, represented by the cow?
SCABBARD: it is of later manufacture. In wood covered with brocade.

In conclusion, it is a fairly unusual dagger, which takes us back to the time of the court of the great Mughals.
I suppose that a specialist could easily, through an acid treatment, significantly improve the appearance of the structure of the blade
Ref G-2446