sickles/ weapons of other country than India

Michel · 8th December 2009, 03:34 PM

Hi Detlef,
Interesting suggestion: a ceremonial knife to cut umbilical cord.
I have made a quick search on Google but found nothing of interest.
I will keep looking !
Thank you.

Emanuel,
Is your mother tongue French ? Are you from Quebec and live in English speaking Canada ? You seem to be at ease with French !
If we come back to the N° 3 tool (the one with a brass handle) it is really a convex cutting tool for which I cannot find a reason to the convex sharpened edge. A slashing movement would certainly cut but push away the grass or branches. Now if you want only to cut, it will work with a slicing movement. It is reasonably thick at the base (6mm) and could sustain heavy blow but than the blade is too wide and fragile. (2mm at the cutting edge)

The N° 4 has this very clear angle between the blade and the handle. For me in view of facilitating the slashing movement parallel to earth. But why this really convex blade with more than 180° cutting edge ?

The n° 5 is nice looking but the horn come in to your arm if you try to cut with wrist movement. Strange !
I realize that the forum is full of members having experience with arms but much less with agricultural tool !
Thanks to all for their input
Cheers
Michel

Atlantia · 20th December 2009, 09:30 PM

Don't know anything about this one, but it took my eye. Serrated blade, 15" approx overall length

Gavin Nugent · 21st December 2009, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atlantia

Don't know anything about this one, but it took my eye. Serrated blade, 15" approx overall length

That too took my eye but I let it slide, did you win it at auction? I got the lots either side of it.

Gav

Atlantia · 21st December 2009, 12:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebooter

That too took my eye but I let it slide, did you win it at auction? I got the lots either side of it.

Gav

Yes mate,
what the hell is it? And what was either side? did I not notice?

Gene

Gavin Nugent · 21st December 2009, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atlantia

Yes mate,
what the hell is it? And what was either side? did I not notice?

Gene

To be honest, I have no idea, I think Indian??? I think looking at the reasonalble quality of the piece it is worthy of further discussion.
The other lots were a Sosun Patta "style" knife from North India and a very nice old Chinese sword catcher.
Thanks for the email too.

best

Gav

Atlantia · 23rd December 2009, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebooter

To be honest, I have no idea, I think Indian??? I think looking at the reasonalble quality of the piece it is worthy of further discussion.
The other lots were a Sosun Patta "style" knife from North India and a very nice old Chinese sword catcher.
Thanks for the email too.

best

Gav

Hi Mate,

I didn't even see those!! Bloody ebay.uk blocking search results of knives.
Please make sure you post them here when they arrive so we can all be jealous

The Sickle has arrived today, I know it was described as Indian, but I really didn't think it was (so I added it to the list here of non-Indian). If you think it probobly is Indian, I better put it in another thread.

Cheers
Gene

Billman · 5th November 2010, 06:22 PM

Hi

Names of tools/weapons in other languages is a major problem... I collect billhooks, variously know in the UK as pruning hooks, spar hooks, block hooks, hedging bills, hand bills, bills and a whole load of other regional names...

In France they are called serpes or serpettes (small serpe) but other names also exist e.g. poudo, gouet, goyard, vousge...

Add a long handle and the english bill becomes a staff hook or slasher and a french serpe a croissant (no, not the sort you eat)....

Then there are sickles, also called hooks in the UK, and known as faucilles in France, but the faucillon and faucille à bois are curved billhooks for cutting wood...

Look up the word billhook in Spanish, and you get podadora, but search Google for podadora and you get secateurs and chainsaws... the billhook can be found, but as a podòn or a podal (or by yet another dialect name...)

Mutiple names in one country for the same tool make it difficult to be sure exactly what you have...

Even the experts get it wrong - the Cambridge Museum (UK) has a Spanish sickle shaped billhook catalogued as an 'ocino' - look this word up and you draw a blank... Search instead for 'hocino' and you will find a small 'hoz' or sickle - the 'h' in hocino is silent - if museums have this level of confusion, what hope is there for the amateur collector....

Add dialect to regional accent, and puta, pota, poda, puda can all sound the same - all are dialect variations on poudo in France and Spain...

Good luck on getting the name right for a weapon or tool in your collection....

8th December 2009, 03:34 PM	#1
Michel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Switzerland Posts: 139	Ceremonial knife Hi Detlef, Interesting suggestion: a ceremonial knife to cut umbilical cord. I have made a quick search on Google but found nothing of interest. I will keep looking ! Thank you. Emanuel, Is your mother tongue French ? Are you from Quebec and live in English speaking Canada ? You seem to be at ease with French ! If we come back to the N° 3 tool (the one with a brass handle) it is really a convex cutting tool for which I cannot find a reason to the convex sharpened edge. A slashing movement would certainly cut but push away the grass or branches. Now if you want only to cut, it will work with a slicing movement. It is reasonably thick at the base (6mm) and could sustain heavy blow but than the blade is too wide and fragile. (2mm at the cutting edge) The N° 4 has this very clear angle between the blade and the handle. For me in view of facilitating the slashing movement parallel to earth. But why this really convex blade with more than 180° cutting edge ? The n° 5 is nice looking but the horn come in to your arm if you try to cut with wrist movement. Strange ! I realize that the forum is full of members having experience with arms but much less with agricultural tool ! Thanks to all for their input Cheers Michel

5th November 2010, 06:22 PM	#7
Billman Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 129	Hi Names of tools/weapons in other languages is a major problem... I collect billhooks, variously know in the UK as pruning hooks, spar hooks, block hooks, hedging bills, hand bills, bills and a whole load of other regional names... In France they are called serpes or serpettes (small serpe) but other names also exist e.g. poudo, gouet, goyard, vousge... Add a long handle and the english bill becomes a staff hook or slasher and a french serpe a croissant (no, not the sort you eat).... Then there are sickles, also called hooks in the UK, and known as faucilles in France, but the faucillon and faucille à bois are curved billhooks for cutting wood... Look up the word billhook in Spanish, and you get podadora, but search Google for podadora and you get secateurs and chainsaws... the billhook can be found, but as a podòn or a podal (or by yet another dialect name...) Mutiple names in one country for the same tool make it difficult to be sure exactly what you have... Even the experts get it wrong - the Cambridge Museum (UK) has a Spanish sickle shaped billhook catalogued as an 'ocino' - look this word up and you draw a blank... Search instead for 'hocino' and you will find a small 'hoz' or sickle - the 'h' in hocino is silent - if museums have this level of confusion, what hope is there for the amateur collector.... Add dialect to regional accent, and puta, pota, poda, puda can all sound the same - all are dialect variations on poudo in France and Spain... Good luck on getting the name right for a weapon or tool in your collection.... Last edited by Billman; 6th November 2010 at 11:29 AM. Reason: spelling error

20th December 2009, 09:30 PM	#2
Atlantia Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: The Sharp end Posts: 2,928	Don't know anything about this one, but it took my eye. Serrated blade, 15" approx overall length