Archaic Moro barung

[Sajen]

Here you can see two similar barungs from my collection, the two on the right, both are also with shandigan blades. Sadly both pommels are not complete.

[Ian]

Sajen, thanks for showing those examples. Very nice early forms.

[Ian]

Another example of the early junggayang hilt, again with a shandigan blade. This one was exhibited in the History of Steel Exhibition in Macao. It is a personal favorite of mine.


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[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Ian

Sajen, thanks for showing those examples. Very nice early forms.

Thank you Ian! The one on the complete right is a monster with a length of 65,5 cm out of scabbard and has a very nice ferrule.

[Battara]

Detlef I like that silver chasing work on the punto!

[drac2k]

Sajen, thank you for sharing your beautiful barongs with us !

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by drac2k

Sajen, thank you for sharing your beautiful barongs with us !

My enjoy David!

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Battara

Detlef I like that silver chasing work on the pinto!

Hello Jose, it was an extra surprise since it wasn't visible on the pictures from the German auction house.

[Ian]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Thank you Ian! The one on the complete right is a monster with a length of 65,5 cm out of scabbard and has a very nice ferrule.

Comgratulations on such a great barung. That's unusually long for an early barung.

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Ian

Comgratulations on such a great barung. That's unusually long for an early barung.

Thank you Ian! Funnily I've purchased it once by a German auction house as single bidder.

Regards,
Detlef

[Ian]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Thank you Ian! Funnily I've purchased it once by a German auction house as single bidder.

Regards,
Detlef

Detlef,

I think there has been a lack of general knowledge until recently about these archaic styles of barung and an undervaluing of them by the market. They are rather "plain" compared with some later examples, and maybe not considered very desirable. As I noted already, the style of hilt is one of my favorites and I think it is a beautiful example of Moro art and craftmanship. However, with increasing awareness of these older forms, the days of finding "sleepers" may be coming to an end (like archaic kris and twist core examples, which are now much more expensive than 10-15 years ago).

In the recent auction where I purchased the one I posted at the head of this thread there was an early 20th C barung with a fancier carved pommel that went for the same price.

[Ian]

Another example of an old style hilt, with a wide pommel but abbreviated beak and crest. This one also has a narrow horn ring at the end of the punto, similar to another example in post 3 above. Such a horn ring or spacer is uncommon in my experience.

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