Pulahan Talibong with red guard and engravings

Indio_Ira · 11th July 2021, 08:01 PM

Sharing my Tailbong blade from the Pulahan movement in the Philippines.

The provenance of this blade from the person I got it from was that, it was taken from a dead native man in 1906 in La Paz, Leyte during the Pulahan Campaign.

There is an engraving of a bird, I'm thinking perhaps a Sarimanok (?)

Hilt - 6in
Guard (tip to tip) - 4 3/4in
Blade - 15 15/16

Battara · 12th July 2021, 02:17 AM

I love the engravings.

The blade looks more Tagalog to me. Hard to see details of the hilt. Does the tang go through the end of the hilt?

ariel · 12th July 2021, 03:32 AM

If this indeed belonged to one of the Pulahanes, you got yourself a part of history.
But I always remember a saying from somebody on this Forum: Buy the sword, not its history:-(((

Ian · 12th July 2021, 05:59 AM

Indio Ira:

Most unlikely to be a Visayan knife. I agree with battara, this looks like a Central Luzon knife with a hilt often associated with Apalit (Pampanga) manufacture. The edge appears to have a convex grind (rather than chisel grind). The small iron ferrule and a "lip" on the hilt adjacent to the ferrule is often found on older knives from Apalit. Might also be from Lake Taal/Batangas area.

The sarimanok is essentially a Moro folk symbol, especially used by the Maranao people.

Ian

xasterix · 13th July 2021, 03:25 PM

Agreed with what the others have said. The blade profile is a dinahong buo (sometimes called dahong bolo) of Luzon. It may have been mislabeled, a lot of bringback pieces have incorrect tags and provenance.

Indio_Ira · 13th July 2021, 08:00 PM

Thank you all for the feedbacks.

It could have been mislabeled indeed.

I’ve never seen another Pulahan blade besides this one- but the red guard definitely is a good indication wouldn’t you all think?

Pulahan (those wearing red) chosen color is red after all.

Would be great to identify the engravings as well.

Indio_Ira · 13th July 2021, 08:17 PM

I got the blade by the way from Davis brothers

11th July 2021, 08:01 PM	#1
Indio_Ira Member Join Date: Apr 2021 Posts: 26	Pulahan Talibong with red guard and engravings Sharing my Tailbong blade from the Pulahan movement in the Philippines. The provenance of this blade from the person I got it from was that, it was taken from a dead native man in 1906 in La Paz, Leyte during the Pulahan Campaign. There is an engraving of a bird, I'm thinking perhaps a Sarimanok (?) Hilt - 6in Guard (tip to tip) - 4 3/4in Blade - 15 15/16 Attached Images

12th July 2021, 02:17 AM	#2
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,225	I love the engravings. The blade looks more Tagalog to me. Hard to see details of the hilt. Does the tang go through the end of the hilt?

12th July 2021, 03:32 AM	#3
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	If this indeed belonged to one of the Pulahanes, you got yourself a part of history. But I always remember a saying from somebody on this Forum: Buy the sword, not its history:-(((

12th July 2021, 05:59 AM	#4
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,203	Indio Ira: Most unlikely to be a Visayan knife. I agree with battara, this looks like a Central Luzon knife with a hilt often associated with Apalit (Pampanga) manufacture. The edge appears to have a convex grind (rather than chisel grind). The small iron ferrule and a "lip" on the hilt adjacent to the ferrule is often found on older knives from Apalit. Might also be from Lake Taal/Batangas area. The sarimanok is essentially a Moro folk symbol, especially used by the Maranao people. Ian

13th July 2021, 03:25 PM	#5
xasterix Member Join Date: Oct 2018 Posts: 660	Agreed with what the others have said. The blade profile is a dinahong buo (sometimes called dahong bolo) of Luzon. It may have been mislabeled, a lot of bringback pieces have incorrect tags and provenance.

13th July 2021, 08:00 PM	#6
Indio_Ira Member Join Date: Apr 2021 Posts: 26	Thank you all for the feedbacks. It could have been mislabeled indeed. I’ve never seen another Pulahan blade besides this one- but the red guard definitely is a good indication wouldn’t you all think? Pulahan (those wearing red) chosen color is red after all. Would be great to identify the engravings as well.

13th July 2021, 08:17 PM	#7
Indio_Ira Member Join Date: Apr 2021 Posts: 26	I got the blade by the way from Davis brothers