Tulwar silver decoration style

[spiral]

mmmm lots of intresting points to ponder, & I agree blades are damaged doing what they were made to do. {& by rust etc.} But many non tulwar metal handles are also destroyed by time & enviroment. wood, horn bone & ivory check,split, warp, decay or are eaten by worms & beetles & then need to be replaced. Stone & crystal crack or shatter when dropped.

Ive only had 6 or 7 tulwar & only 2 of those had damaged handles.

But for me the blade is the heart of it, that is what makes it a weapon. Perhaps I should collect ninhonto?

I do love a good & complimentry handle though.

The handle on its own even when fantasticaly artistic & well made is still just a handle, although as some of you say its very true that the handle style can be a great identifyer to origin.

But I think realy both blade & handle always need to be appraised & described, not just one piece or another.

To do anything else would only be half the picture, I thik?

I like the Gestalt approach myself in appraisel. {& indeed in most things.}

Spiral