Thai daab/katana fusion

[Mark]

Here is an interesting example of the fusion between daab and nihon-to that was popular during the middle and late Ayutthaya Period. According to Khun Nattapat, Director of Research at the Thai National Museum (interview by Dan Wilke), as the popularity of Japanese swords increased, the Monarch required that they must show a Thai influence (i.e., Thai decorative features and motifs). This resulted not only in katana blades mounted in a Thai style, but blades such as this, which are purely Thai in manufacture yet display a distinct Japanese flavor. The grip is done with a pattern that somewhat abstractly depicts the kind of silk cord wrapping found on nihon-to. The grabang (guard) is larger than is typical, more like a Japanese tsuba. The handle has a slightly oval cross-section, not round as is more typical for daab, yet not as much as found on nihon-to. It has a neat demon/ogre face on the pommel cap. Interestingly, the blade profile is remarkably like that of a Chinese liuwei dao. The scabbard, while well-make, is a later replacement. The original would likely have had metal fittings en suite with the handle decoration.

My guess is that this is an 18th C sword.