Another atypical kris
 

This is an atypical kris, with a Mindanao Moro-made antique blade, re-dressed with a Christianized pinned hilt. The scabbard looks original, but the bands have been replaced; the upper one is marked "Lieutenant Sevilla," likely the one who had the kris re-dressed. There were 2 Lieutenant Sevillas in active duty during the 1920s; one from the Philippine Scouts, the other from the Philippine Constabulary.

As I wrote in my article Unraveling the Moro kris (https://www.rappler.com/.../unraveli...is-sword.../):
"Non-Moro groups re-dress a Moro kris for many possible reasons. The most common is to claim ownership of the weapon. For Spanish and American colonizers (including Filipino soldiers under their command), bringing back a kris equates to prestige in having fought and survived in Moroland."

The provenance trail of the kris is interesting: from "Lieutenant Sevilla," it was acquired by an ILAGA member in the 1970s, who in turn gave it to his friend in Cebu before he passed away. The edge had been extensively sharpened over time.

I reset the hilt and pins, wrapped the grip, and now consider this as my "main" sword. Its hybrid form reflects my own journey: a Christian fortunate to be learning the weaponry and fighting arts of the South, through the generosity of Bangsamoro elders and brothers.

Happy Easter!

Thanks for posting this historically fascinating sword. Did a riveted handle and baka baka change the feel of the sword upon impact?

Halloo sir, it surprisingly didn't modify the "feel" of the blade as it cut. It did, however, benefit me, as the replacement hilt accommodated my large grip perfectly and I felt that I could retain the kris much better (than its original Moro hilt).

Here's a slow-motion cut that I did with rolled and soaked cardboard:

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16ZVYRwktj/

Wow! :eek: That's a great sword! Great video Raymundo!

Best regards,
Detlef

Thanks very much Detlef! :D

Thanks Xas for posting this one. Seems to be a Maranao blade and perhaps originally a Maranao scabbard that had its cross piece (sampir) removed and then the underlying throat reshaped in the late 19th C Maguindanao manner. Impressive cutting power in the video.

Your video seems to be on a facebook post that it not open to the general public so only people on your friends list can view it. Can you change the setting on that video to public? Thanks!

I really need to try this rolled and soaked cardboard cutting.

Thanks,
Leif

Friends, thank you very much for the appreciative and kind words!

David, my post is already set to public, but I suspect there may be limitations due to my country-location (this has been a problem before). I uploaded a longer cutting video on my Youtube instead:

https://youtu.be/9pV0wfk8e2k

:D