Thanks Mark,
The handle on the dha is 12 inches long, and the blade is just at 20 inches. I bought it at an antique shop, which had high quality txtiles and tribal artifacts. In Vientianne there were tourist shops everywhere selling cheap reproductions of every sort...swords, textiles, statues, that you can find in most larger cities in Laos, Vietnam, and Malaysia. My wife and I happened to find just a couple though, that seemed to have higher quality items. The owner of the shop told me that the sword was from the 1920's and was commonly carried by soldiers that protected the king.
I don't know much about this type of sword, and don't know whether the guy was being honest or not, although he did seem knowledgable and honest regarding textiles I knew more about. Regardless, I liked the design, balance, and quality of the sword, so I would have purchased it anyway. Thanks again,
David
|