Some Chinese weapons

Timo Nieminen · 24th March 2014, 12:38 AM

Some Chinese weapons. One batch of reproduction Bronze Age weapons. The ge is mounted on a one-handed round haft - elliptical or rounded rectangular would have been better. The end of the haft is slotted to take the tang of the head, which is pinned through the tang hole with a bamboo pin. The ear-pommeled jian is nice, and not as common a repro as the ring-hilted jian.

The other batch is antiques, mostly late 19th century. The small knife might be 20th century, and might be American. The fancier jian is supposed to be early 19th century.

DaveA · 25th March 2014, 06:33 AM

Hi, great pictures. Thanks for posting.

The small knife looks like it might be a Chinese hudiedao, a type known as a "river pirate" sword. This type is thought to be derived from maritime boarding knives. The lack of a hand guard distinguishes the ‘river pirate” type from other hudiedao. These swords without guards can be instantly reversed in the hand and used with the back edge to subdue an opponent without lethal cuts.

River piracy along the Yangtze River was rampant in the 19th century. The coasts of both Guangdong and Fujian province were literally covered in pirates in the 1840s. Pirates battled the military for nearly a century.

Best,

Dave A.

VANDOO · 25th March 2014, 05:52 PM

A NICE SELECTION OF REPLICA BRONZE WEAPONS AS WELL AS AUTHENTIC OLD STEEL WEAPONS FROM CHINA. I HAVE A COLLECTION OF THE BRONZE WEAPONS AS WELL, I LIKE THEM JUST FINE AS THEY ARE OFTEN VERY WELL MADE REPLICAS AT A PRICE I CAN AFFORD. THE OLD ORIGINAL BRONZES ARE DIFFICULT TO FIND AND EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO AFFORD OR TELL THAT THEY ARE NOT REPLICAS. SO LACKING THE NECESSARY EXPERTESE I AM CONTENT WITH MY NICE REPLICAS.

THE AUTHENTIC WEAPONS HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OVER THE REPLICAS AS THERE IS A HISTORY AND MANY STORIES THAT GO WITH THEM THAT THE REPLICAS LACK. UNFORTUNATELY WE USUALLY CAN NEVER KNOW THESE STORIES SO MUST USE OUR IMAGINATIONS.

Timo Nieminen · 25th March 2014, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveA

The small knife looks like it might be a Chinese hudiedao, a type known as a "river pirate" sword. This type is thought to be derived from maritime boarding knives. The lack of a hand guard distinguishes the ‘river pirate” type from other hudiedao. These swords without guards can be instantly reversed in the hand and used with the back edge to subdue an opponent without lethal cuts.

Knives like the small one are often found in pairs. Some can be seen in this thread: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15217 . The only ones I've seen with any reliable provenance have been street gang knives. But, yes, I see them labelled as "river pirate knives". Also, knives like the long guardless knife are called "river pirate knives". And short jian are often called "river pirate swords". So everything in that photo other than the long dao is sometimes called "river pirate <foo>".

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveA

River piracy along the Yangtze River was rampant in the 19th century. The coasts of both Guangdong and Fujian province were literally covered in pirates in the 1840s. Pirates battled the military for nearly a century.

Continued well into the 20th century as well. A. Lilius, "I Sailed with Chinese Pirates" has some interesting descriptions and photos: http://www.amazon.com/Sailed-Chinese...dp/9881815444/ , including muzzle-loading cannon in use.

DaveA · 27th March 2014, 12:46 AM

Love that thread. My dbl knives are shown there.

Thanks for the Amazon link.

Dave

24th March 2014, 12:38 AM	#1
Timo Nieminen Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 422	Some Chinese weapons Some Chinese weapons. One batch of reproduction Bronze Age weapons. The ge is mounted on a one-handed round haft - elliptical or rounded rectangular would have been better. The end of the haft is slotted to take the tang of the head, which is pinned through the tang hole with a bamboo pin. The ear-pommeled jian is nice, and not as common a repro as the ring-hilted jian. The other batch is antiques, mostly late 19th century. The small knife might be 20th century, and might be American. The fancier jian is supposed to be early 19th century. Attached Images

25th March 2014, 06:33 AM	#2
DaveA Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Wisconsin, USA Posts: 413	Small knife - "River pirate" Hi, great pictures. Thanks for posting. The small knife looks like it might be a Chinese hudiedao, a type known as a "river pirate" sword. This type is thought to be derived from maritime boarding knives. The lack of a hand guard distinguishes the ‘river pirate” type from other hudiedao. These swords without guards can be instantly reversed in the hand and used with the back edge to subdue an opponent without lethal cuts. River piracy along the Yangtze River was rampant in the 19th century. The coasts of both Guangdong and Fujian province were literally covered in pirates in the 1840s. Pirates battled the military for nearly a century. Best, Dave A.

27th March 2014, 12:46 AM	#5
DaveA Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Wisconsin, USA Posts: 413	Thanks Love that thread. My dbl knives are shown there. Thanks for the Amazon link. Dave

25th March 2014, 05:52 PM	#3
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	A NICE SELECTION OF REPLICA BRONZE WEAPONS AS WELL AS AUTHENTIC OLD STEEL WEAPONS FROM CHINA. I HAVE A COLLECTION OF THE BRONZE WEAPONS AS WELL, I LIKE THEM JUST FINE AS THEY ARE OFTEN VERY WELL MADE REPLICAS AT A PRICE I CAN AFFORD. THE OLD ORIGINAL BRONZES ARE DIFFICULT TO FIND AND EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO AFFORD OR TELL THAT THEY ARE NOT REPLICAS. SO LACKING THE NECESSARY EXPERTESE I AM CONTENT WITH MY NICE REPLICAS. THE AUTHENTIC WEAPONS HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OVER THE REPLICAS AS THERE IS A HISTORY AND MANY STORIES THAT GO WITH THEM THAT THE REPLICAS LACK. UNFORTUNATELY WE USUALLY CAN NEVER KNOW THESE STORIES SO MUST USE OUR IMAGINATIONS.