Interesting and unusual knife, opinions please!

[Sajen]

Hello dear members,

thank you for your kind comments! I for my part think that Rick is on the correct path. I think as well that it is a dha knife or short sword. For the origin I am unsure, it could come either from the Thai Tak province Mae Sot river region since the blade shape remember strong to the bird dha's (see picture) or from the bottom of Thailand at the border of Malaysia (Pattani region) but I think that the first region is the better guess since the blade shape is very similar. Any other thoughts?

[Ian]

Hi Detlef:

Very nice knife. That heavy "chunky" ferrule is not really typical of Thai work and reminds me more of what we see sometimes on Sumatran pedang and similar knives/swords. I think I would favor southern Thailand near Malaysia as its source. Nice find.

Any thoughts about the figure on the hilt?

Ian.

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Ian

Very nice knife. That heavy "chunky" ferrule is not really typical of Thai work and reminds me more of what we see sometimes on Sumatran pedang and similar knives/swords. I think I would favor southern Thailand near Malaysia as its source. Nice find.

Any thoughts about the figure on the hilt?

Hi Ian,

thank you for comment. I think both guesses are good as the other. The Thai Tak province Mae Sot river region (border to Burma) I've had in mind because this bird head dha's coming from this region and the blade shape is very similar, see also this thread: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ight=bird+head
But the origin from the Southern Thai (Pattani) region is also a very good one, like you said, the chunky silver ferrule is a good hint for this origin.

Maybe the blade construction can give us a hint when I have it in my hands. The blade looks laminated which would pin point to South Thailand IMVHO.

And no, I haven't a clue about the deity hilt, do you have something in mind?

Best regards,
Detlef

[Ian]

Hi Detlef:

I was trying to track down your reference to the "Tak Province Mae Sot region." Those terms are not showing up using the search engine for this site. Perhaps you could let us know where that attribution comes from.

Ian.

[Sajen]

Hi Ian,

a very good friend of mine have visited this region (like many others) and have found that these bird head dha's coming from there, the one shown on the red background was once in his possession like some others in the same style.

Regards,
Detlef

[Ian]

Hi Detlef:

Thanks for that information. As far as the identification of the figure on the hilt, I wonder if it is a depiction of Hanuman from the Thai Ramakien. We had a discussion previously of how Hanuman is portrayed in the Thai version of the Ramayama here. The open mouth and canine teeth are common features in Hanuman's representation.

Ian

[Sajen]

Hi Ian,

very good hint and very obvious! This would also explain the "crown" he wearing. Thank you.

Regards,
Detlef