Tibetan sword: real?????

ariel · 9th June 2007, 02:03 AM

The cardinal rule is that every antique weapon sold from China is a fake.
So far so good.
Look at this one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...7382&rd=1&rd=1
It has a hairpin blade and this is considered to be an unmistakeable sign of an authentically old blade.
Question:
Is this one real despite its Chinese origin of sale?
If not, are we witnessing a further level of sophistication in Chinese fakes?

Lew · 9th June 2007, 03:15 AM

[QUOTE=ariel]The cardinal rule is that every antique weapon sold from China is a fake.

Enough said!

Lew

Tim Simmons · 9th June 2007, 10:54 AM

Very clever

almost an art like the art of painting forgers. {copyists

}

katana · 9th June 2007, 03:41 PM

I'm not certain...but the blade surface looks slightly 'ripple-ed' . It suggests to me ,assuming this is a fake, that perhaps it was 'acid etched' with areas 'masked off' with wax

Bill M · 9th June 2007, 10:54 PM

Virginia, aren't you a little old to be believing in Chinese fairy tales?

spiral · 10th June 2007, 12:14 AM

Thats a real laminated blade, forging flaws from lack of flux just like the originals, But The Chinese fakers can do that.{they have done it for years, only there poorest & commonest fakes are just etched.} Looks like ithe blades been around a while though.

Its quick ,fast ,rough course lamination, just like the genuine old Tibet work, but just look at handle, scabbard & scabbard stiching, it real low quality junk all round.

I guess theres a 25% chance {IMHO of course.} that its a real old blade with "restored fittings & scabbard" to use western dealers & collecters current parlance.

Spiral

kai · 10th June 2007, 01:56 AM

Quote:

I'm not certain...but the blade surface looks slightly 'ripple-ed' . It suggests to me ,assuming this is a fake, that perhaps it was 'acid etched' with areas 'masked off' with wax

Hmm, just fairy tales? Sure, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that this is a 21st century piece. OTOH, the laminations in question look interesting and much better than anything I've seen achieved by wax and acid etching.

http://www.tibet-buddhism.com/buddhist/mrm/b2310-7.JPG
http://www.tibet-buddhism.com/buddhist/mrm/b2310-8.JPG
In these 2 close-ups the blade looks laminated to me: there seem to be forging flaws which may follow the staining pattern. Even the surface rust seems to partially follow the laminations:
http://www.tibet-buddhism.com/buddhist/mrm/b2310-11.JPG

I'd certainly like to see high-rez pics before betting much money though.
If this really happens to be a paint job, I'm going to reetch any wootz blade myself before buying in the future!

BTW, I can't see what's so difficult about the hairpin pattern that it can't be reproduced by the Chinese facilities (or a competent rural blacksmith in the middle of nowhere for that matter) - the Chinese fakers have already been pouring out pretty complex laminated blades for years. Would be much more interesting to verify wether this really has an inserted steel edge with a good hardness...

Regards,
Kai

kai · 10th June 2007, 01:59 AM

Spiral beat me to it...

BTW, is it just me or are others also encountering frequent vikingsword server timeout errors lately?

9th June 2007, 02:03 AM	#1
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Tibetan sword: real????? The cardinal rule is that every antique weapon sold from China is a fake. So far so good. Look at this one: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...7382&rd=1&rd=1 It has a hairpin blade and this is considered to be an unmistakeable sign of an authentically old blade. Question: Is this one real despite its Chinese origin of sale? If not, are we witnessing a further level of sophistication in Chinese fakes?

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9th June 2007, 03:15 AM	#2
Lew (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: East Coast USA Posts: 3,191	[QUOTE=ariel]The cardinal rule is that every antique weapon sold from China is a fake. Enough said! Lew

9th June 2007, 10:54 AM	#3
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,925	Very clever almost an art like the art of painting forgers. {copyists }

9th June 2007, 03:41 PM	#4
katana Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Kent Posts: 2,658	I'm not certain...but the blade surface looks slightly 'ripple-ed' . It suggests to me ,assuming this is a fake, that perhaps it was 'acid etched' with areas 'masked off' with wax

9th June 2007, 10:54 PM	#5
Bill M Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: USA Georgia Posts: 1,599	Virginia, aren't you a little old to be believing in Chinese fairy tales?

10th June 2007, 12:14 AM	#6
spiral Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,712	Thats a real laminated blade, forging flaws from lack of flux just like the originals, But The Chinese fakers can do that.{they have done it for years, only there poorest & commonest fakes are just etched.} Looks like ithe blades been around a while though. Its quick ,fast ,rough course lamination, just like the genuine old Tibet work, but just look at handle, scabbard & scabbard stiching, it real low quality junk all round. I guess theres a 25% chance {IMHO of course.} that its a real old blade with "restored fittings & scabbard" to use western dealers & collecters current parlance. Spiral

10th June 2007, 01:59 AM	#8
kai Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 3,255	Spiral beat me to it... BTW, is it just me or are others also encountering frequent vikingsword server timeout errors lately?