19th C Kudi trantang/tranchang

[Ian]

A couple of years ago I came across an odd looking axe that was described as a kudi tranchang. It did not really resemble the items labeled as such and shown on these forum pages. It aroused my curiosity, and I bought it relatively cheaply. When I received it, I was surprised how heavy and solid it was, and the pictures did not really do justice as to how massive the blade was. The auction description was helpful in understanding that the kudi tranchang started as a tool/weapon and ended up as a symbolic/talismanic object.

There are two blades in one head. The bulbous protrusion resembles an axe, and is sharpened on the convex edge. Protruding upwards is a second, somewhat rectangular, cutting blade with a concave edge.

Here are the excellent auction pictures:

And here is the auction description:

Earlier this year, Peter Dekker wrote a nice short piece on the kudi, and I have reproduced his text and pictures here. These were taken from his commercial site, which included objects for sale, so the forum rules do not allow for a direct link to Peter's page.

Included in Peter's information is a copy of an old diagram found in a 1909 article on the kudi. It shows some of the tool/weapon forms, as well as the later talsimanic/symbolic forms. The date given by the source for transition from tool/weapon to talismanic object is 1900.

An interesting item and I enjoyed tracking down more information on it. As always, your thoughts and comments are most welcome!