Recent SEA trip aquisitions
 

Just got back from Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia. picked up some blades while I was there.

I wanted to post some pics I just snapped real quick to see what others thought about the pieces.

4 Malay/Sumatran knives and 1 Dha from Thailand.

2 of the knives are old I think and 2 are not. This was confirmed by the seller, but...they confirm almost anything you suggest.

The Dha I have no Idea and the poor pics probably won't help.

I'll work on some better ones.

BB

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...&.dnm=9e71.jpg

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...a1.jpg&.src=ph

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...f5.jpg&.src=ph

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...ef.jpg&.src=ph

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...42.jpg&.src=ph

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/brianb...f6.jpg&.src=ph

ID
 

Brian,
You have in order;
A kerambit, sans the usual finger hole
A sewar, odd handle shape
Another sewar, nice
A badek
A dha with a VERY pronounced belly swell and scabbard that uses the old construction techniques (I'd like to see better pics)

Others on the forum can tell you more about the knives than me.

Dan

Brian,

I think it is not too bad what you brought home.

The first one is a korambit.
The second and third picture is of the same dagger I presume. I think it is a pisau from peninsula.
The third knife is a sewar and the fourth one a badek.
Dha is not my specialty.

I think all malay daggers are not new and well made. The sewar and korambit may be newer but the fittings are very fine and of a good quality as far as I can judge from your pictures

First Blade is a beladau. They're related to kerambit and lawi ayam but are a stabbing weapon rather than a gut hook, thus the lack of a finger hole. Common across much of the "Malay" areas of the Archipelago but especially Sumatra.

The second blade is a typically referred to as a badik in the Northeast Peninsula. This particular form is normally attributed to Pattani. The dress is not of traditional form and is relatively recent. Note the ferrule which may well be part of an old rifle bullet casing.

The sewar is of a form usually attributed to South or East Sumatra.

The badik is a bugis type that normally come from S. Sulawesi but are also found in quantity in the Melaka Straits as well.

I may be wrong.. but I think No. 4 is a rencong from Aceh.

Correction
 

Thanks for the corrections DA. I was close and that means I'm getting better. I can go to bed happy tonight knowing I learned something new - beladau! You said it was a stabbing weapon - with that hooked blade it sure looks like it was made for ripping. I assume it is also sharpened on the inside. Is it held the same way as the kerambit or is the grip reversed?

Dan is, of course, correct that the dha (daab) is Thai. It is difficult to see much from the photos, but it does appear to have some age to it, which I find very interesting, because the blade shape, handle binding and scabbard construction are elements commonly seen on contemporary Thai daab.

I've got a few older Thai swords with similar features, and it appears this is, perhaps, an "archetypal" model for modern daab.

It's hard to give an accurate estimate of age from photos, particularly since I've grown accustomed to using visual construction and styling cues to help do so. The ubiquitous "early 20th century" is my guess.

Cool sword. :)


P.S. Dan, what did you mean by "old" scabbard construction techniques? I see what looks like metal bands around wood, which is something that appears frequently on modern daab. What am I missing here? :)

You are right DA. The first one is a beladau. I believed the beladau is a weapon especially found on Borneo, Kalimantan.