Writing in October 1812 from Abbas Mirza's camp on the borders of Georgia, Sir Gore Ouseley listed a group of presents destined for the Prince Regent in London from his Persian counterpart. Among them was a helmet, armour and this 'Persian sword with gold clasp'. The British ambassador politely requested an acknowledgement from the Prince Regent, 'that I may have it in my power to render the Prince Royal’s heart glad, by knowing that you have graciously condescended to accept these marks of his unfeigned attachment and veneration.' George IV did accept the gifts which Ouseley presented to him in person on his return to England in March the following year.

The sword (shamshir) has a curved single-edged blade made of watered crucible steel inlaid on the outer face with gold inscriptions. The hilt has a steel cross-guard and pommel decorated with a flower and foliage design in gold overlay and a pistol shaped grip with walrus ivory scales and gold filigree tang plates. The wooden scabbard is covered in black leather molded over cord and tooled to imitate fish skin; with steel and gold decorated belt fittings to match the sword hilt and a plain steel chape. A nineteenth century inventory states the sword as having a 'black leather belt, tan colour within, with gold clasps and fastenings made in the shape of a swan.'

The blade is inlaid with gold cartouches and inscriptions using two techniques and in four distinct phases suggesting the blade has been re dedicated, the last perhaps for the presentation to the Prince Regent. The first comprises the Shia shahada (testimony of faith) on the outer face and, on the inner face, a long incised inscription in a cartouche, largely removed, ending ya Hafiz ('O Protector!').The uppermost inscription on the outer face is a dedication to Najaf Quli Mirza in good nastaliq script inside a cartouche, incised and inlaid in gold. Also on the outer face in good naskh script applied by punched dots inlaid with gold, are a cartouche containing an attribution to 'Ismail ibn Asadullah Esfahani' and boxed inscriptions comprising Quran 61:13; the talismanic invocation to Zulfiqar; Quran 48: 1 and 2; and a 2x2 buduh magic square. The lowest inscription on the outer face, in less-refined nastaliq script, incised and inlaid in gold, is Quran 3: 110-12.

Text adapted from L'Empire des Roses: Chefs-d'oeuvre de l'art persan du XIX^e siècle (cat.entry: Emily Hannam and Simon Metcalf, 2018).