Boxer/Republican era dadao

[Philip]

Hi, Yu-ming
That's a nice example, with a clean blade that appears to be of nice quality for one of these, and intact cord wrapping with mellow fading and lovely patina. Great to find one of these whose grip covering isn't all ratty and chewed up.

The style of the wrapping (a simple spiral with four longitudinal "basketweave" strips) is quite common on dadao. On occasion, the longitudinal bands are cloth strips, not cord. Red on red is most often seen, although I've run into red and green, red and white, etc. As I've stated in a previous post, the material seen more often in Vietnam is split rattan, or a heavy twine that is twisted from sisal or similar plant fiber.