second look at a Chinese chopper

josh stout · 10th March 2008, 05:22 PM

I was asked as a digression from another thread to elaborate on this knife.

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j6...LoGrH1o-To.jpg

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j6...aLLb6wYDxQ.jpg

I think I have posted it before, but I have much more information now. I discussed this type of knife with Scott Rodell, Pillip Tom, and Peter Decker, and I think I have a better idea what it is.

This chopper is from a very long line of single-handed Chinese choppers found in Song and Ming illustrations. They were developed from agricultural implements, but are definitely weapons. Late Qing ones might be called guitoedao (demon head knife), mid Qing ones might be called pudao, and Ming ones might be called yanchidao (goose wing knife), yantoudao, or fengshidao (pheonix wing knife). In one Ming text a similar knife is referred to as a shoudao (hand knife), but perhaps simply to differentiate it from the similar looking pole arms. Most examples have much more simple clipped tips, but this is not the only such example I have seen with the wavy upturned tip.

This one may be late Ming/early Qing, or it could be 19th c., it is very difficult to tell. They appear more often in Ming illustrations than Qing ones.

Josh

10th March 2008, 05:22 PM	#1
josh stout Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 407	second look at a Chinese chopper I was asked as a digression from another thread to elaborate on this knife. http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j6...LoGrH1o-To.jpg http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j6...aLLb6wYDxQ.jpg I think I have posted it before, but I have much more information now. I discussed this type of knife with Scott Rodell, Pillip Tom, and Peter Decker, and I think I have a better idea what it is. This chopper is from a very long line of single-handed Chinese choppers found in Song and Ming illustrations. They were developed from agricultural implements, but are definitely weapons. Late Qing ones might be called guitoedao (demon head knife), mid Qing ones might be called pudao, and Ming ones might be called yanchidao (goose wing knife), yantoudao, or fengshidao (pheonix wing knife). In one Ming text a similar knife is referred to as a shoudao (hand knife), but perhaps simply to differentiate it from the similar looking pole arms. Most examples have much more simple clipped tips, but this is not the only such example I have seen with the wavy upturned tip. This one may be late Ming/early Qing, or it could be 19th c., it is very difficult to tell. They appear more often in Ming illustrations than Qing ones. Josh