FINE SWORD, INDONESIA OR MALAYSIAN ?

VANDOO · 30th September 2010, 06:24 PM

I BID ON THIS RECENTLY BUT IT GOT AWAY BUT I SAVED THE PICTURES TO SHARE AT LEAST

WOULD BE INTERESTED IN ANY OPINIONS ON ITS ORIGIN, IT IS 27.5IN LONG. GOLD AND SWASSA ENJOY!

Henk · 30th September 2010, 06:38 PM

Very nice.

I would say Indonesia, Sumatra.

Sajen · 30th September 2010, 07:11 PM

A real beauty!

I also would guess Indonesia, Sumatra. Thank's for sharing.

Maurice · 30th September 2010, 07:17 PM

Beautifull Sumatran pedang!

Besides the suassa and gold thing, I really like the floral carvings on the horn handle a lot.
Very divergent as normally seen (in a positive way).

Maurice

KuKulzA28 · 30th September 2010, 07:45 PM

The handle resembles a lot of klewangs attributed to Sumatra and Lombok...

Battara · 1st October 2010, 01:49 AM

I LOVE IT! Love the repousse on the gold. I would bet that the scabbard is a replacement. I agree with the Sumatra attribution, definitely Indonesian.

Question: would this be considered a sultan's piece?

Gavin Nugent · 1st October 2010, 05:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VANDOO

I BID ON THIS RECENTLY BUT IT GOT AWAY BUT I SAVED THE PICTURES TO SHARE AT LEAST

WOULD BE INTERESTED IN ANY OPINIONS ON ITS ORIGIN, IT IS 27.5IN LONG. GOLD AND SWASSA ENJOY!

Opinons...hmmm, I say bid harder, it is a good looking piece.
I'd would have said East coast of Java to Lombok would be correct, but the chiseling to the forte and the style of repousse say clearly to me Sumatra. All very fine quality!
These are all a mystery at best to me when placing with exactness. Zonneveld shows a similar blade profile as a Pedang III, also noted to have pamor..

Does anyone have any other publications that sort through these styles.

Gav

Ron Anderson · 1st October 2010, 05:17 AM

On the good ones I'd expect the whole wood base of the scabbard to be covered in silver.

In this case, it may have been gold to match the hilt. The gold or silver might well have been plain if typical of the genre.

I don't think it would have been just wood.

If the hilt is wood than I think it's likely to be from somewhere other than Lombok, where they really do seem to like their hilts to be buffalo horn.

Of course, I have seen the occasional sword a with wood hilt from Lombok, but not these klewangs. They're generally horn.

Ron Anderson · 1st October 2010, 05:21 AM

Hi Vandoo

The hilt actually looks like buffalo horn to me.

It's hard to tell just by looking sometimes. But it looks more like horn than wood. You can't rely on the description either, because most people don't investigate any further. It kind of looks like wood, so they just assume it's wood and describe it as such.

Ron Anderson · 1st October 2010, 05:36 AM

Looking at the shading, and the grain, it's almost certain this is buffalo horn.

They apparently boil it before working it.

When I get the chance, I'll try post pictures of the horn hilts I have. I have about 20 Lombok hilts, all figural and quite exquisitely carved.

Ron Anderson · 1st October 2010, 05:50 AM

However, I agree with Gav that the chiseling on the forte is also worth noting.

It really is nice work all round.

30th September 2010, 06:24 PM	#1
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	FINE SWORD, INDONESIA OR MALAYSIAN ? I BID ON THIS RECENTLY BUT IT GOT AWAY BUT I SAVED THE PICTURES TO SHARE AT LEAST WOULD BE INTERESTED IN ANY OPINIONS ON ITS ORIGIN, IT IS 27.5IN LONG. GOLD AND SWASSA ENJOY! Attached Images

30th September 2010, 06:38 PM	#2
Henk Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 1,209	Very nice. I would say Indonesia, Sumatra.

30th September 2010, 07:11 PM	#3
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,126	A real beauty! I also would guess Indonesia, Sumatra. Thank's for sharing.

30th September 2010, 07:17 PM	#4
Maurice Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 1,434	Beautifull Sumatran pedang! Besides the suassa and gold thing, I really like the floral carvings on the horn handle a lot. Very divergent as normally seen (in a positive way). Maurice

30th September 2010, 07:45 PM	#5
KuKulzA28 Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: between work and sleep Posts: 731	The handle resembles a lot of klewangs attributed to Sumatra and Lombok...

1st October 2010, 01:49 AM	#6
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,257	I LOVE IT! Love the repousse on the gold. I would bet that the scabbard is a replacement. I agree with the Sumatra attribution, definitely Indonesian. Question: would this be considered a sultan's piece?

1st October 2010, 05:17 AM	#8
Ron Anderson Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 228	On the good ones I'd expect the whole wood base of the scabbard to be covered in silver. In this case, it may have been gold to match the hilt. The gold or silver might well have been plain if typical of the genre. I don't think it would have been just wood. If the hilt is wood than I think it's likely to be from somewhere other than Lombok, where they really do seem to like their hilts to be buffalo horn. Of course, I have seen the occasional sword a with wood hilt from Lombok, but not these klewangs. They're generally horn.

1st October 2010, 05:21 AM	#9
Ron Anderson Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 228	Hi Vandoo The hilt actually looks like buffalo horn to me. It's hard to tell just by looking sometimes. But it looks more like horn than wood. You can't rely on the description either, because most people don't investigate any further. It kind of looks like wood, so they just assume it's wood and describe it as such.

1st October 2010, 05:36 AM	#10
Ron Anderson Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 228	Looking at the shading, and the grain, it's almost certain this is buffalo horn. They apparently boil it before working it. When I get the chance, I'll try post pictures of the horn hilts I have. I have about 20 Lombok hilts, all figural and quite exquisitely carved.

1st October 2010, 05:50 AM	#11
Ron Anderson Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 228	However, I agree with Gav that the chiseling on the forte is also worth noting. It really is nice work all round.