Hey philkid!
That gunong looks very familiar. Did you happen to pick it up in Aldevinco in Davao? I saw one there in May with an ivory hilt for sale by a Maranao merchant. The proprietor wasn't there, so his son quoted me a ridiculously low price which I quickly agreed to. However, since the hilt was ivory I was a bit paranoid of the CITES ban on ivory. I wanted to get a bill of sale and a letter from the proprietor stating that the gunong was an antique so that if I had a problem with US customs, I had some documentation. Unfortunately for me, when the proprietor came back to the shop to write the letter, he quoted me a more realistic price and yelled at his son for offering it to me at a steal. I wasn't upset, and both the proprietor and I had a laugh at his son's expense. It was a quality antique gunong and both of us knew it. If that is the same gunong I almost purchased, then you definately got a quality old example. Nice find!
ZEL
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