DAYAK MANDAU SWORD FOR COMMENT
 

HAD THIS DAYAK MANDAU SWORD FOR SOME TIME NOW, WHICH HAS BEEN MOUNTED FOR DISPLAY BY PREVIOUS OWNER AT SOME STAGE
COMMENTS WELCOME

Unfortunately this mandau is a modern piece made for tourist.
Thanks
Carlos

Thanks Carlos I had it since 15 years but its good to know,as I better sell it for something Real,had no idea ,cheers

Quite a few low quality and/or recycled pieces got this "dangling tooth" treatment; not based on any traditional culture though.

I believe this was a fad appearing around WW2 and continued till around the Indonesian independance. Any confirmed later examples?

Regards,
Kai

THANKS KAI GREAT INFORMATION,WAS TOLD THEY ARE HORSE TEETH,BUT UNSURE,LOOKS REALLY OLD ,BUT>????

It is amazing how many of these have shown up in reference books as antique and legit examples...much to the horror of those that know better.

I believe that many of these readily identifiable modern examples are actually made in West Irian Jaya (now West Papua). This was the former Dutch part of Papua-New Guinea, and was claimed by Indonesia when the Dutch withdrew in the early 1960s. Before claiming the territory at that time, the western half of Papua-New Guinea (i.e., Dutch New Guinea) had not been part of Indonesia. This was a major land grab by the Indonesians.

The poor blades on these mandau, at best "village" quality, suggest low skills in iron working, consistent with the proposed origin in West Papua. I think you will find that many of the teeth on these examples come from pigs--not large enough for horses and wrong shape.

Ian.

THANKS IAN FOR THE INFORMATION,CHEERS