Asian execution sword

[Atlantia]

Could we get some dimensions and weight for the Dadao please Jos?

[Spearcollector]

Hi,

The dimensions and weight for the Dadao are:
total lengt 110 cm the blade self is 84 cm
and the weight is 1,300 kg.

Kind regards.
Jos

[KuKulzA28]

I find the ox-tail type blade interesting as the stereotypical Da-dao has the more rectangular looking tip.

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by Spearcollector

Hi,

The dimensions and weight for the Dadao are:
total lengt 110 cm the blade self is 84 cm
and the weight is 1,300 kg.

Kind regards.
Jos

Hi Jos,

reason I asked about the weight/size is that I wanted to compare the scale with a Dao I have:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...hlight=chinese

Mines a rough old thing in need of a rebuild.
It weighs just under 1.5kg, total length: 92cm, blade length 75cm.

Regards
gene

[Atlantia]

Hi again Jos,
Not just 'bumping' your thread I think I should ahev been clearer in my last post.
These heavy swords are often seen marked 'executioners sword' by dealers. I've often wondered (and Jim has kindly shone some light on this) If they were indeed for beheading or actually a two handed (hand and a half) fighting sword.
My big old Dao is really heavy and the centre of gravity is about 25cm down from the guard so really far forwards. A definate 'swinging' sword.

Its difficult to find film of large heavy dao's or Dadao's being used. Have a look at this youtube clip.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8ETMj8n6CM

Regards
Gene

[Klas Larsson]

Hi Jos,
I wonder is this a false back edge or is it sharp? It looks like it sharp, and in that case its probably a type of dao has been mentioned in other forums as typical for Muslim minorities in northern China. The way it turns a little more up towards the tip instead of being more aligned with the handle for stabbing, is also pointing in this direction. So maybe not such a typical Niuwei dao / Oxtail dao type of blade?
Regards,
Klas

[Spearcollector]

Thanks everyone for the help to search information about the asian sword.
But I search for myself a little and I think the blade is the same type as a
"Ba Gua Dao" you can find it on the web. the blade has the same form but not the handle, this one is mutch older than all what you find on the web.
And thanks again for visiting our website, www.spearcollector.com
We collect African old weapons, shields and other tribal objects.

[Gavin Nugent]

Thank you for sharing Jos.

Lots of interesting research still to be done on this piece, in particular the Coin motif in the blades. Here is a pair of knives I have in my collection of Chinese weapons http://www.swordsantiqueweapons.com/s064_full.html
They share the same coin inlay, though mine show it in the blade and the hilt.
Whilst Klas notes yours as maybe being north China I ask, would a Muslim minority display Taoist symbols??? The knives I show are most definately south China in origins though who really knows with trade and such, mine could have been fashioned in the north under direction of someone who came from the south or yours could have been made in the south under direction of someone from the north, such if the global village of old as it is today.
I would love to see other examples of this type of dao and or the coin inlay in blades or hilts.
Show em if you got em good peoples.

Gav

[fearn]

Originally Posted by Spearcollector

Thanks everyone for the help to search information about the asian sword.
But I search for myself a little and I think the blade is the same type as a
"Ba Gua Dao" you can find it on the web. the blade has the same form but not the handle, this one is mutch older than all what you find on the web.
And thanks again for visiting our website, www.spearcollector.com
We collect African old weapons, shields and other tribal objects.

Hi Spearcollector,

It could be a "bagua dao," but I think there's a more likely possibility.

The bagua dao is best known from the baguazhang martial art, because one of the early masters used a dao that was twice the size of a normal dao.

That's all a bagua dao is. So far as I know (and I studied baguazhang for some time), the bagua dao originated in the Imperial palace, where some of the bagua masters trained the palace guard. Basically, there's a tradition in China that the higher up you are in the military, the bigger the blade that you wield, and so the imperial guard used the oversized, "Bagua" dao as a weapon. The size, rather than the shape, is the big thing about what makes a dao a "bagua" dao. That and modern marketing. I never saw these oversized swords marketed as baguadao in the US until after 2000, but that might be my ignorance showing.

However, based on the s guard and ring, I'd say that this is more likely a normal oxtail dao that was remounted for taiji practice.

I borrowed this image from http://www.ycgf.org/Articles/TJ_Dao/Taiji_Dao-1.html. Basically, a proper taiji dao also has a different blade than an oxtdail dao. However, I can easily see someone mounting an available blade on an approximately taiji-style hilt to make something to practice with, and I think that's what you've got here. The size of your blade is proper for a taiji dao to, as far as I know.

Best,

F