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#1 |
Member
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 607
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A friend recently picked up this sword on eBay, he thought it was North African. I tend to think it's from the East Indies.
What are your thoughts? http://www.ebay.com/itm/18th-C-SWORD...p2047675.l2557 |
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#2 |
Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
Posts: 4,167
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my first thought was mexican, espada ancha.
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#3 |
Member
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Posts: 5,503
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I, for some reason, am thinking of Borneo: kind of Parang Nabur-ish ricasso and blade incisions.
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#4 |
Vikingsword Staff
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Aussie Bush
Posts: 4,165
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Looks Spanish colonial to me, especially the hilt.
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#5 | |
Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
Posts: 4,167
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![]() Quote:
![]() the blade is also quite machete shaped |
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#6 |
Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 1,430
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Nice sword. The hilt form reminds me of this one, on a sword I posted on the forum some time ago, also thought of as probably Colonial Spanish American.
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#7 |
Vikingsword Staff
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Aussie Bush
Posts: 4,165
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There is a brief (but informative) discussion of Spanish colonial swords from a few years ago that Jim McDougall started: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?p=61271 The article on this site written by Lee Jones is also very helpful.
As pointed out by several people in that thread, there is not a vast amount of information on Spanish colonial swords. Even some of the museums in Spain have few examples. Ian. |
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#8 |
Vikingsword Staff
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Aussie Bush
Posts: 4,165
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Here is one of mine from the old UBB forum. It has a triangular blade and the inscription "Recuerdo Republicano." There are also floral designs at forte that seem similar to those on the first sword in this thread. My sword was thought to be from about the time of the first Philippine Republic in the early 1900s. The accompanying leather sheath is typically Filipino and would fit that period.
Ian. |
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#9 |
Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,145
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Hi,
I will give you my opinion. I'm not an expert of this kind of sword. As our colleagues said above, you have to see the Spanish colonial swords like another type that you can see in this thread: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...berber+morocco Philippines, Mexico, Cuba, Morocco, they were all under Spanish influence. I think that's a big mistake to try to put these swords only in one box.They were produced locally following more or less the Spanish models quoted previously. Yours looks North African to me. Kubur |
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#10 |
Arms Historian
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Route 66
Posts: 9,894
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Thank you for bringing up that thread Ian, and as you well note, there is a great paucity of data on Spanish Colonial arms, and as keenly noted by Kubur, it is virtually impossible to regionally classify most. The "Spanish Main" was a vast trade and colonial network which survived into the 20th century, and the influences of these sword styles diffused into many of their trade entrepots.
I am inclined to think of this particular version as from the Filipino spectrum(as seen in another variation in your post #8). Colin, The example you post very much resembles a form known as Espada Barinas (from a region in Venzuala if I recall). Naturally as noted, this is only speculation but reasonably well supported in discussions some time ago in my notes. |
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#11 | |
Vikingsword Staff
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Aussie Bush
Posts: 4,165
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![]() Quote:
Completely agree with you about the diverse nature of the swords from many lands that were influenced controlled and colonized by Spain. There is great variety and many local influences on swords from the Spanish colonies. However, using a label such as "Spanish colonial" can be considered a starting point to further identification. At one time Spain was master of about one-fifth of the known world in the 17th, 18th and 19th C, so that leaves a lot of scope for defining sword origins and styles more precisely. The Spanish influence in swords can be seen in a number of ways, but perhaps most commonly in the hilts which are usually full tang, have a D-guard (or less commonly an S-guard), and may be comprised of three parts--circular metal ferrule/wooden or horn grip/circular metal ferrule--or the handle may be two flat scales (usually wood or horn) pinned through the full length tang. There are, of course, more styles than these two basic ones, but they are the most common. Blades seem to be more highly variable, often reflecting local customs and tastes. We really do need an encyclopedia of colonial Spanish arms. Unfortunately, as noted previously on this Forum, the Spanish museums seem to be rather poor sources for these particular weapons, so it may be necessary to look to the respective colonies themselves for relevant examples. I had relatively little success in finding Spanish colonial swords in Philippine museums when I was traveling there 10-20 years ago. Where did they all go? Cheers, Ian. |
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