Very Unusual Philippine Sword.

Ian · 17th September 2016, 12:20 PM

Robert,

Here is another blade of similar style from the History of Steel site. The Macao Museum called it a Luzon tabak.

Ian

Sajen · 18th September 2016, 04:32 PM

Hello Robert,

what a beautiful and unusual bolo with it's tin scabbard.

And a very good restoration you have done until now. Please keep us updated with the further steps you will do on it.

Regards,
Detlef

Robert · 20th September 2016, 07:20 PM

Sorry that it has taken so long to reply, but I have had a long difficult weekend.

Ken,
As far as welding goes I prefer either Mig or Tig over gas welding as it is much easier to control the heat. I always attach a piece of steel formed to fit tightly against the blades surface with a ridge contoured so that the cutting edge fits tightly against it. This is done by fixing the piece in place using thin gauge steel wire. Not only does this act as a heat sink, but allows the weld to be started on the ridge and continue up onto the thicker part of the blade without burning through. Of course it will have to be cut loose from the blade before the weld to the opposite side can be done. I also use heat sink paste on the blade about an inch on either side of where the weld is to be made. After the welding is completed the blade is then inserted into hot sand to slowly cool again before the clean-up and final shaping are done.

Ian,
Thank you again for your comments on this piece and for the photos you have added as examples. I have examples of both styles of knives/swords that you have shown, but this piece is much larger with a much deeper belly than both of my examples of these two other styles do. Just for added information I have added a photo taken from a book (that I will have to look up the name of) that shows one style of the bolos that we have been calling "tabacs" as "katana". There was a slight mix-up of the letter designations of the items in the description section, but the corosponding names have been added to the photo itself.

Detlef,
Thank you for your kind words on the work that has been done to this point. I will add more photos as the work on this progresses. If it were not for your help I would not have been able to add this most interesting piece to my collection.

Best,
Robert

Battara · 21st September 2016, 01:41 AM

I understand the "katana" one to be from Pampangas.

Robert · 21st September 2016, 05:05 AM

Quote:

I understand the "katana" one to be from Pampangas.

That and their being called "tabac" is what I was always lead to believe as well. According to the header both these pages are from "The Pinatubo Negritos" by R.B. Fox of the National Museum so I am not quite sure now where the "katana" originally originated from.

Ian · 24th September 2016, 03:43 PM

Robert,

Thank you for the very interesting plate and reference. The Pinatubo Negritos are, I understand, members of the Ayta tribal group. The term negritos came via the Spanish to describe the dark skin of these rather short people. US servicemen at Clark AFB and the Subic Bay Naval Station would have come in contact with Ayta because this was part of their home territory. In the 1990s, when I visited the Subic Bay area, there were many of the Ayta in that area and they were closely associated with the Jungle Environment Survival School (JESS).

Of the examples shown in Fox's plate, the hilt of the second one sticks out like a sore thumb. The hilt is clearly of Tagalog origin and Jose's attribution to Pampanga is probably correct. Not that Pampanga is far from the Ayta at all, and this style of knife could easily have been acquired in the area they occupy.

The first knife (called here a dipalata) has a style of hilt that caused much debate on this site some years ago. A studio portrait of an Ilongot man showed him holding one of these bolos. At the time of that discussion it was thought that style might be attributed to the Ilongot, a tribal group of former headhunters in northern Luzon. Fox's plate suggests an Ayta origin, and given the staged nature of the picture of the Ilongot man, it is possible he was holding a bolo from elsewhere merely as a prop for the picture. However in both cases, Ilongot and Ayta, this hilt style is not consistent with other weapons used by these respective groups.

The remaining knives shown in Fox's plate are more typical of what I have seen among the Ayta, with rather nondescript wooden hilts of functional (rather than decorative) form.

Robert, I tried to find a digital version of the Philippine Journal of Science online, but volume 31 (?) does not seem to be available. Perhaps you could scan and post a copy of the article here for future reference as this seems to be a rare publication.

Ian

Ian · 24th September 2016, 04:00 PM

One more comment. The word dipalata is not one I recognize as Tagalog. Although dila does mean tongue in Tagalog I don't recognize the construction of dipalata as being based on dila. My Tagalog-English dictionary does not have the word dipalata, so I'm wondering if it may be from the Ayta dialect. Does anyone know from which dialect the word dipalata may have come?

Ian

17th September 2016, 12:20 PM	#1
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,552	Robert, Here is another blade of similar style from the History of Steel site. The Macao Museum called it a Luzon tabak. Ian Attached Images

20th September 2016, 07:20 PM	#3
Robert EAAF Staff Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Centerville, Kansas Posts: 2,196	Sorry that it has taken so long to reply, but I have had a long difficult weekend. Ken, As far as welding goes I prefer either Mig or Tig over gas welding as it is much easier to control the heat. I always attach a piece of steel formed to fit tightly against the blades surface with a ridge contoured so that the cutting edge fits tightly against it. This is done by fixing the piece in place using thin gauge steel wire. Not only does this act as a heat sink, but allows the weld to be started on the ridge and continue up onto the thicker part of the blade without burning through. Of course it will have to be cut loose from the blade before the weld to the opposite side can be done. I also use heat sink paste on the blade about an inch on either side of where the weld is to be made. After the welding is completed the blade is then inserted into hot sand to slowly cool again before the clean-up and final shaping are done. Ian, Thank you again for your comments on this piece and for the photos you have added as examples. I have examples of both styles of knives/swords that you have shown, but this piece is much larger with a much deeper belly than both of my examples of these two other styles do. Just for added information I have added a photo taken from a book (that I will have to look up the name of) that shows one style of the bolos that we have been calling "tabacs" as "katana". There was a slight mix-up of the letter designations of the items in the description section, but the corosponding names have been added to the photo itself. Detlef, Thank you for your kind words on the work that has been done to this point. I will add more photos as the work on this progresses. If it were not for your help I would not have been able to add this most interesting piece to my collection. Best, Robert Attached Images

18th September 2016, 04:32 PM	#2
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,448	Hello Robert, what a beautiful and unusual bolo with it's tin scabbard. And a very good restoration you have done until now. Please keep us updated with the further steps you will do on it. Regards, Detlef

21st September 2016, 01:41 AM	#4
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,349	I understand the "katana" one to be from Pampangas.

24th September 2016, 03:43 PM	#6
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,552	Robert, Thank you for the very interesting plate and reference. The Pinatubo Negritos are, I understand, members of the Ayta tribal group. The term negritos came via the Spanish to describe the dark skin of these rather short people. US servicemen at Clark AFB and the Subic Bay Naval Station would have come in contact with Ayta because this was part of their home territory. In the 1990s, when I visited the Subic Bay area, there were many of the Ayta in that area and they were closely associated with the Jungle Environment Survival School (JESS). Of the examples shown in Fox's plate, the hilt of the second one sticks out like a sore thumb. The hilt is clearly of Tagalog origin and Jose's attribution to Pampanga is probably correct. Not that Pampanga is far from the Ayta at all, and this style of knife could easily have been acquired in the area they occupy. The first knife (called here a dipalata) has a style of hilt that caused much debate on this site some years ago. A studio portrait of an Ilongot man showed him holding one of these bolos. At the time of that discussion it was thought that style might be attributed to the Ilongot, a tribal group of former headhunters in northern Luzon. Fox's plate suggests an Ayta origin, and given the staged nature of the picture of the Ilongot man, it is possible he was holding a bolo from elsewhere merely as a prop for the picture. However in both cases, Ilongot and Ayta, this hilt style is not consistent with other weapons used by these respective groups. The remaining knives shown in Fox's plate are more typical of what I have seen among the Ayta, with rather nondescript wooden hilts of functional (rather than decorative) form. Robert, I tried to find a digital version of the Philippine Journal of Science online, but volume 31 (?) does not seem to be available. Perhaps you could scan and post a copy of the article here for future reference as this seems to be a rare publication. Ian

24th September 2016, 04:00 PM	#7
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,552	One more comment. The word dipalata is not one I recognize as Tagalog. Although dila does mean tongue in Tagalog I don't recognize the construction of dipalata as being based on dila. My Tagalog-English dictionary does not have the word dipalata, so I'm wondering if it may be from the Ayta dialect. Does anyone know from which dialect the word dipalata may have come? Ian