Indonesian blade with 'Tjikeroeh' inscription

sta94 · 20th September 2009, 07:55 PM

Hello, I acquired this really neat knife/short-sword recently. I don't have much experience with Southeast Asian weapons so thought I should share it here and get expert opinions & feedback. The Oriental-Arms website has similar knives being described as being made in the village of Tjikeroeh (variations in spellings), now called Chikorea (sp?) in Indonesia, targeted at the colonial Dutch population and combining aspects of native Indonesian as well as Western swords. This one has "TJIKEROEH" and "1898" inscribed on the base of the blade near the hilt. I'm guessing that's the year the blade was made, as the Oriental Arms examples also have similar inscriptions with year of manufactures. Everything about this knife looks to be well-made - from the blade, designs on the blade flats & spine, guard, hilt, to the simple scabbard.

So ... what do you all think???

sta94 · 20th September 2009, 08:01 PM

Some more photos:

Is there a specific name for knives/swords like this? Is this an average, above-average, or below-average example? Any additional info? Thank you very much!

asomotif · 20th September 2009, 10:21 PM

Hello Sta94,

Here is a link to a thread showing some examples and some discussion about the origin / use.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ight=tjikeroeh

In this thread, 2 links to other threads.
You can also try the seach function for "tjikeroeh".

The turn up pretty frequently worldwide.
Your example seems like "average" quality to me. Is there a scabbard ?

Best regards,
Willem

Sajen · 20th September 2009, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by asomotif

Hello Sta94,

Here is a link to a thread showing some examples and some discussion about the origin / use.
In this thread, 2 links to other threads.
You can also try the seach function for "tjikeroeh".

The turn up pretty frequently worldwide.
Your example seems like "average" quality to me. Is there a scabbard ?

Best regards,
Willem

Hi Willem,
you foget to give the link!

Regards,

Detlef

Sajen · 20th September 2009, 11:01 PM

This swords called Golok, your blade is very nice. But it seems like the hilt is from a newer date, please show us the sheat.

Regards,

sajen

sta94 · 21st September 2009, 09:03 AM

Hi guys, thanks so much for the additional info and the links. Lots of info in there, I'll be digesting them slowly.

So, you'd call this a Golok variant? I was initially thinking along the lines of Parang, seeing its similarity to a few photos of a Parang Nabur I saw recently. There is such a variety in SEAsian blade forms that it'll probably be a while before a beginner like me can sort them all out.

As for this sword, to my amateurish eyes, the hilt and the scabbard seem to be made of a similar kind of wood (don't know the wood type). One side of the scabbard is lighter color than the other. Also the scabbard and hilt look like they're of around the same age. Don't know if this means that they came with the original blade or if they were replaced around the same time. The tang does not come out of the end of the hilt though, unlike the examples I see in the links posted.

The first two photos I posted above shows the sword next to its wooden scabbard. I'm posting more pics below:

20th September 2009, 07:55 PM	#1
sta94 Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 16	Indonesian blade with 'Tjikeroeh' inscription Hello, I acquired this really neat knife/short-sword recently. I don't have much experience with Southeast Asian weapons so thought I should share it here and get expert opinions & feedback. The Oriental-Arms website has similar knives being described as being made in the village of Tjikeroeh (variations in spellings), now called Chikorea (sp?) in Indonesia, targeted at the colonial Dutch population and combining aspects of native Indonesian as well as Western swords. This one has "TJIKEROEH" and "1898" inscribed on the base of the blade near the hilt. I'm guessing that's the year the blade was made, as the Oriental Arms examples also have similar inscriptions with year of manufactures. Everything about this knife looks to be well-made - from the blade, designs on the blade flats & spine, guard, hilt, to the simple scabbard. So ... what do you all think???

20th September 2009, 10:21 PM	#3
asomotif Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 2,225	Hello Sta94, Here is a link to a thread showing some examples and some discussion about the origin / use. http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ight=tjikeroeh In this thread, 2 links to other threads. You can also try the seach function for "tjikeroeh". The turn up pretty frequently worldwide. Your example seems like "average" quality to me. Is there a scabbard ? Best regards, Willem Last edited by asomotif; 20th September 2009 at 11:19 PM.

20th September 2009, 08:01 PM	#2
sta94 Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 16	Some more photos: Is there a specific name for knives/swords like this? Is this an average, above-average, or below-average example? Any additional info? Thank you very much!

20th September 2009, 11:01 PM	#5
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 8,775	This swords called Golok, your blade is very nice. But it seems like the hilt is from a newer date, please show us the sheat. Regards, sajen

21st September 2009, 09:03 AM	#6
sta94 Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 16	Hi guys, thanks so much for the additional info and the links. Lots of info in there, I'll be digesting them slowly. So, you'd call this a Golok variant? I was initially thinking along the lines of Parang, seeing its similarity to a few photos of a Parang Nabur I saw recently. There is such a variety in SEAsian blade forms that it'll probably be a while before a beginner like me can sort them all out. As for this sword, to my amateurish eyes, the hilt and the scabbard seem to be made of a similar kind of wood (don't know the wood type). One side of the scabbard is lighter color than the other. Also the scabbard and hilt look like they're of around the same age. Don't know if this means that they came with the original blade or if they were replaced around the same time. The tang does not come out of the end of the hilt though, unlike the examples I see in the links posted. The first two photos I posted above shows the sword next to its wooden scabbard. I'm posting more pics below: