Naga Daggers

[Gavin Nugent]

I pose a question about an elusive weapon, has anyone seen or do they have examples of Naga daggers?

I have not sighted any in the book, "The Nagas" but I know they must surely exist.

If anyone can provide an image or three I would be most grateful.

Gavin

[colin henshaw]

Hi Gavin

As far as I am aware, the Nagas didn't really use daggers, but I could be wrong. From memory, I can recall seeing a Naga spearhead with the socket bound in red rattan, in a wooden sheath open to one side like for a dao. Have no images though.

There is an image of a knife in the Oldman catalogue reprint, but it is described as "Khamti".

[Gavin Nugent]

Hello Colin,

Thank you for posting.

Would you have an image from the Oldman catalogue available?

The use of a spear head in this manner noted makes logical sense and I have often wondered if any daggers would be socketed too, much like the knives, swords & choppers in many other cultures within SEA.

Gavin

[colin henshaw]

Here is an image, Gavin.

[Gavin Nugent]

Thanks Colin, they exist and are certainly rare.

[Ian]

Another one that I acquired more than 15 years ago and have seen very few since then. Note that the open sheath has a single raised edge corresponding to the back of the knife--this is a typical arrangement in my limited experience.

Ian.

[Gavin Nugent]

An interesting example with interesting similarities Ian.

The Bolo shape and non flared pommel have me thinking of other influence though....so little known, so few seen...

Thanks

[Ian]

Originally Posted by SwordsAntiqueWeapons

An interesting example with interesting similarities Ian.

The Bolo shape and non flared pommel have me thinking of other influence though....so little known, so few seen...

Thanks

Yes, I agree Gavin. The chisel-edged fat belly is certainly reminiscent of Visayan tenegre, for example, and the hilt does not look quite right (I got this off eBay where it was listed as a Philippine bolo). However, the scabbard is certainly distinctive, especially the bands of copper wire and the attached leather strap, and judging from the marks on this old blade it has been in that sheath for some time.

Another two examples I have seen that were provenanced from Nagaland did show the more characteristic hilt, an iron ferrule, and slimmer blades. The sheath on both had the raised edge on the backside of the blade and one was bound in copper wire while the other was bound with rattan strips. Overall length was probably about 12-15 inches, although I did not have the chance to handle them and my notes indicate only an approximate length. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of these other two.

As you say, just not a lot of data to go by with these knives.

Ian.

[Ian]

Gavin:

For what it is worth, here are some links to online pictures of so-called Naga knives in a local museum. The University of Pennsylvania is a prestigious university with a long history of anthropologic research. However, I'm not sure that it is a great authority on Naga artifacts.

These are the Naga knives listed in the online catalog of the University of Pennsylvania’s Museum of Archeology and Anthropology:

http://www.penn.museum/collections/object/23189

http://www.penn.museum/collections/object/58188

http://www.penn.museum/collections/object/203252

http://www.penn.museum/collections/object/246272

http://www.penn.museum/collections/object/80616

Ian

[Gavin Nugent]

Thanks Ian, great finds.

There is a bit of variety there.

#1 looks interesting
#2 Kachin hilt ponderous blade
#3 Looks like it might have come out of Assam tea plantations or similar...EU made I suspect
#4 Very interesting, looks like a Sema (Sumi) Naga Dao blade...I had no idea the tangs were that long...which might explain why the bamboo shafts are often bound with colourful rattan for such a long way up the shaft....looks old too, maybe one of the early 1800 types?
#5 Kachin

[Timo Nieminen]

Originally Posted by SwordsAntiqueWeapons

#3 Looks like it might have come out of Assam tea plantations or similar...EU made I suspect

I have a knife very much like this (maybe a little smaller, but close to the size of this #3). English made, just before 1900 if the number on the blade is a date of manufacture, came from India.

Wonderful tool for clearing vines. Before secateurs, it would have been one of the best light pruning tools.

[Ian]

Rawson, in his book The Indian Sword, makes the point that the Nagas were an iron-poor people who would "appropriate" iron and steel from the tea plantations and railroads to manufacture their implements and weapons. He presents some examples of Naga axes made from British hoes that presumably were obtained from tea plantations.

[Ian]

This knife is attributed to the Abor people but is also found among the Mishmi. The sheath is again open-faced, wooden and with metal bands. There is again a wooden lip on the side of the sheath that corresponds to the spine of the blade.

[Gavin Nugent]

Here is one of this type in native context 1922, Mishmi, Assam.

Ian, your bolo type is on the hip of the chap in the background.

[Ian]

Very nice photograph Robert. I have taken the liberty of enlarging the two knives in your picture, the one on the guy in front and the one in back. The bands across the scabbard appear to be solid metal strips in each case (rather than several wraps of wire).

[Gavin Nugent]

Originally Posted by Ian

Very nice photograph Robert.

[Ian]

Originally Posted by SwordsAntiqueWeapons

Sorry Gavin--my bad!