Burmese story dha restored by Battara

Andrew · 14th June 2005, 04:32 AM

Some of you may have seen this in March at the Timonium show, when I took delivery of it from Battara (Jose).

I purchased this and another sword from Artzi at the 2004 Timonium Antique Arms and Armor show, and shortly thereafter shipped it to Jose for scabbard and handle restoration. I picked up a short knife that matched it pretty closely from RhysMichael, and Jose restored it as well.

This sword appears in Tony Tirri's book Islamic Weapons, and was in pretty rough shape when I got it. Unfortunately, I have no good pre-restoration shots, other than the one in Tony's book.

It cleaned up nicely.

Overall shot:

The handle was coming apart at the ivory/ferrule junction. Jose definitely tightened things up.

The twisted silver wire covers an old lead repair that looked like the pommel had been completely decapitated at some point.

Jose fabricated a completely new scabbard mouth and chape from silver.

A small section of the gorgeous silver koftgari on the blade.

The majority of the scabbard covering is a brass alloy (perhaps low-content silver Jose?) that polished up very nicely. Almost looks silver. Jose replaced the missing or disintigrating resin dividing bands between the scabbard sections with lovely silver bands.

I am extremely pleased with this restoration, and forever grateful to Jose for his craftsmanship and hard work.

zelbone · 14th June 2005, 04:54 AM

WOW!!! That is one BEAUTIFUL dha!

Andrew, congratulations on that dha and good call by having Battara do restoration work on it. Jose is truly an artisan in all respects.

Andrew · 14th June 2005, 05:23 AM

Thanks, Zel.

Antonio Cejunior · 14th June 2005, 07:27 AM

Beautiful blade and beautiful restoration work by José.

Congratulations Andrew

Antonio

RhysMichael · 14th June 2005, 04:06 PM

Wow that looks great Andrew. Now we need to find someone to translate the story. I have been told they are often Buddist parables

Andrew · 14th June 2005, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RhysMichael

Wow that looks great Andrew. Now we need to find someone to translate the story. I have been told they are often Buddist parables

I'm dying to have these swords translated! I have also read (can't recall where, specifically) that the "stories" are Buddhist. The panels at the forte may be much more interesting.

I'll post pix of the knife you sold me for comparison, as the story that appears there is different than any I've personally seen. It actually depicts a forge.

Andrew · 14th June 2005, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Antonio Cejunior

Beautiful blade and beautiful restoration work by José.

Congratulations Andrew

Antonio

Many thanks, Antonio.

I hope when Jose has some time, he'll stop by this thread and provide some description of the process.

Andrew · 18th June 2005, 05:21 AM

Thanks for the information, Mark.

Here's a picture of the actual knife, a close-up of the forge, and the scene from the opposite side (note the leaf-bladed sword):

This knife was a perfect match for the larger sword, so I had Jose restore it in the same way. The similarities between these two, as well as some others in my collection and several others I've handled and looked in photos leads me to believe they all come from the same maker or facility.

Battara · 18th June 2005, 02:14 PM

Seeing this lovely puppy again reminded me of something else I had to do. I had to make another silver sleeve on the hilt because the original one was disintigrating (verythin silver

). On this one I also ground and polished the rough brass on the scabbard and made a silver top and bottom along with silver bands inbetween the brass sections. Looks better now that the hilt is upside right.

Had some trouble with the brass in that inbetween the brass were brass wire/pitch and the brass sections were veryuneven.

I had to cut them straight and even cut a small section of wood on the scabbard to make everything fit. Lot of work but well worth it for both.

Jens Nordlunde · 18th June 2005, 03:02 PM

Hi Andrew,

The sword itself is a pleasure to look at, and the restoration very professional done – congratulation. One gets the feeling that the smith, having finished the sword, made the knife out of the rest of the iron

.

14th June 2005, 04:32 AM	#1
Andrew Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: USA Posts: 1,725	Burmese story dha restored by Battara Some of you may have seen this in March at the Timonium show, when I took delivery of it from Battara (Jose). I purchased this and another sword from Artzi at the 2004 Timonium Antique Arms and Armor show, and shortly thereafter shipped it to Jose for scabbard and handle restoration. I picked up a short knife that matched it pretty closely from RhysMichael, and Jose restored it as well. This sword appears in Tony Tirri's book Islamic Weapons, and was in pretty rough shape when I got it. Unfortunately, I have no good pre-restoration shots, other than the one in Tony's book. It cleaned up nicely. Overall shot: The handle was coming apart at the ivory/ferrule junction. Jose definitely tightened things up. The twisted silver wire covers an old lead repair that looked like the pommel had been completely decapitated at some point. Jose fabricated a completely new scabbard mouth and chape from silver. A small section of the gorgeous silver koftgari on the blade. The majority of the scabbard covering is a brass alloy (perhaps low-content silver Jose?) that polished up very nicely. Almost looks silver. Jose replaced the missing or disintigrating resin dividing bands between the scabbard sections with lovely silver bands. I am extremely pleased with this restoration, and forever grateful to Jose for his craftsmanship and hard work.

18th June 2005, 03:02 PM	#10
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Hi Andrew, The sword itself is a pleasure to look at, and the restoration very professional done – congratulation. One gets the feeling that the smith, having finished the sword, made the knife out of the rest of the iron.

14th June 2005, 04:54 AM	#2
zelbone Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: VISAYAS and MINDANAO Posts: 169	WOW!!! That is one BEAUTIFUL dha! Andrew, congratulations on that dha and good call by having Battara do restoration work on it. Jose is truly an artisan in all respects.

14th June 2005, 05:23 AM	#3
Andrew Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: USA Posts: 1,725	Thanks, Zel.

14th June 2005, 07:27 AM	#4
Antonio Cejunior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Macau Posts: 294	Beautiful blade and beautiful restoration work by José. Congratulations Andrew Antonio

14th June 2005, 04:06 PM	#5
RhysMichael Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Virginia Posts: 520	Wow that looks great Andrew. Now we need to find someone to translate the story. I have been told they are often Buddist parables

18th June 2005, 05:21 AM	#8
Andrew Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: USA Posts: 1,725	Thanks for the information, Mark. Here's a picture of the actual knife, a close-up of the forge, and the scene from the opposite side (note the leaf-bladed sword): This knife was a perfect match for the larger sword, so I had Jose restore it in the same way. The similarities between these two, as well as some others in my collection and several others I've handled and looked in photos leads me to believe they all come from the same maker or facility.

18th June 2005, 02:14 PM	#9
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,219	Seeing this lovely puppy again reminded me of something else I had to do. I had to make another silver sleeve on the hilt because the original one was disintigrating (verythin silver ). On this one I also ground and polished the rough brass on the scabbard and made a silver top and bottom along with silver bands inbetween the brass sections. Looks better now that the hilt is upside right. Had some trouble with the brass in that inbetween the brass were brass wire/pitch and the brass sections were veryuneven. I had to cut them straight and even cut a small section of wood on the scabbard to make everything fit. Lot of work but well worth it for both.