Moro Spearhead, but from what Battle?

[drac2k]

I recently acquired this Moro Spearhead, with a partially torn tag attributing it to a specific battle; can anyone guess which one he is referencing?

[Sajen]

Hello David,

Sadly I can't help with the battle but I find the binding and the way of the attachment to the shaft most interesting and nice! Very nice Moro spear head!

Regards,
Detlef

[Ian]

Hi drac.

I think the tag refers to one of the two battles between Americans and Muslims at Bud Dajo. Spelling mistakes or variations are common on these old tags.

Ian.

[kai]

If one wants to speculate, the Lake Danao area seems to be a phonetically better match.


Regards,
Kai

[Rick]

The fastenings of the spear head have a 'last ditch' look to them.
I'd guess that the shaft was cut to facilitate either easier transport from the Philippines or for hand-to-hand combat.
I have seen Budiak with an iron loop at the butt end and I believe this was to facilitate retrieval of the spear by an attached cord.

[drac2k]

Thanks to all for your excellent comments.Yes, I believe that the spear was cut down for easier transport home.
20 years ago I found a very similar spear, with comparable wire bindings which I will post this weekend. My theory is that these were siege spears for either attacking a fortified location or defending it;one would not want to lose a lance head thrusting it into something.Maybe the thick wire wrapping would ward off a blow from a sword that might sever the blade from the shaft.
I have two other Moro spears,with similar heads, and heavy 8' bamboo shafts ,not suitable for throwing : more like a pike.They do not have the wire binding.

[Lee]

Always nice seeing another of these budiak spears! Here is an old thread with a few more examples where the head is wired to the shaft, though less robustly than the current example.