knife for comment

[drdavid]

Blade shape and heaviness also make me think Tibet/Bhutan.
DrD

[Andrew]

I don't think this is Burmese. The faceted, stacked and segmented handle is unlike any Burmese knife I've seen. The blade profile does resemble some Burmese and Thai knives, but the particular combination of elements leads me away from that region.

The bolster at the forte reminds me of a Chinese tonkou. I'm not really very familiar with the weapons of Tibet and Bhutan, but I would look more towards a Chinese influence than SEA.

I like that knife alot. Thanks for sharing it.

[pmacleman]

I bought a knife with an almost identical blade 4 years ago when climbing in far W PRC. Far SW Yunnan province on PRC/TAR/Bhutan border. Blade was the same. Shape and dimensions of the grip and furniture the same however was black horn with silver furniture.

Hope this helps.

Paul

[ariel]

Originally Posted by pmacleman

I bought a knife with an almost identical blade 4 years ago when climbing in far W PRC. Far SW Yunnan province on PRC/TAR/Bhutan border. Blade was the same. Shape and dimensions of the grip and furniture the same however was black horn with silver furniture.

Hope this helps.

Paul

Paul,
Congratulations with your first post!
Welcome to the Forum and hope to hear from you more often.
Ariel

[Ian]

Thanks Paul. Very helpful ID. Welcome to the Forum.

Galvano: I think you have something much more interesting than just another Burmese knife. Congrats on finding this one.

Ian.

[Philip]

The shape of the blade is something encountered across a fairly large area of China. Knives with heavy, somewhat leaf-shaped blades of this type have been showing up in the Beijing antiques markets for at least a decade. Interestingly, most of the ones that I have seen and handled have differently-styled grips. Although they share the same "waisted" profile, the ones I've encountered are of oval cross section and are composed of a slab-like gripscale held by several domed rivets (usually 4 or 5) on each side of a tapering blade tang whose contour matches the finished shape of the handle. These rivetted "slab" gripscales are also seen on the straight bladed knives (candao) encased in scabbards which may or not include chopsticks and other culinary utensils.

On the knife in question, the fullers that terminate shy of the grip itself are a feature common on Chinese saber blades. So is the pattern of narrow groove at spine, wider one below. The simple incised motifs at the ends of the fullers are reminiscent of a very similar characteristic on Vietnamese knife and saber blades, although the motifs on this particular example hint at a different aesthetic tradition. The brass sleeve at the base of the blade is a concept analogous to the "tunkou" on many Chinese saber blades, although the shape of this example is closer to its Vietnamese equivalents.

The "stacked" construction of this knife's grip is something found in other regions as well. You see a similar practice on the pommels of small Tibetan sheath knives and on the backswords or pallasches used by the Kham people of the eastern Tibetan hinterlands. In such cases, the stacking typically consists of alternating plates of iron and copper. I'm sure that the concept carries over to the entire grip of this knife.

A very interesting piece!

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by Philip

The shape of the blade is something encountered across a fairly large area of China. Knives with heavy, somewhat leaf-shaped blades of this type have been showing up in the Beijing antiques markets for at least a decade. Interestingly, most of the ones that I have seen and handled have differently-styled grips. Although they share the same "waisted" profile, the ones I've encountered are of oval cross section and are composed of a slab-like gripscale held by several domed rivets (usually 4 or 5) on each side of a tapering blade tang whose contour matches the finished shape of the handle. These rivetted "slab" gripscales are also seen on the straight bladed knives (candao) encased in scabbards which may or not include chopsticks and other culinary utensils.

On the knife in question, the fullers that terminate shy of the grip itself are a feature common on Chinese saber blades. So is the pattern of narrow groove at spine, wider one below. The simple incised motifs at the ends of the fullers are reminiscent of a very similar characteristic on Vietnamese knife and saber blades, although the motifs on this particular example hint at a different aesthetic tradition. The brass sleeve at the base of the blade is a concept analogous to the "tunkou" on many Chinese saber blades, although the shape of this example is closer to its Vietnamese equivalents.

The "stacked" construction of this knife's grip is something found in other regions as well. You see a similar practice on the pommels of small Tibetan sheath knives and on the backswords or pallasches used by the Kham people of the eastern Tibetan hinterlands. In such cases, the stacking typically consists of alternating plates of iron and copper. I'm sure that the concept carries over to the entire grip of this knife.

A very interesting piece!

Great post, Philip, thanks.

Doesn't stacked iron and copper plates for a handle sound awkward? Very little blade presence when a handle is massive.