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#1 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
Posts: 4,167
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Picked this one up from ebay, it's from Zakopane in southern poland, not far from the slovakian border. (i've got three others plus a few steel fokos which are similar). one of my grannys came from not too far away - when it was part of austria-hungary. i was hooked by the eagle head spike opposite the blade, which is brass. (alpine spike on the butt of the haft). they normally have a flat poll.
they used to make them out of steel, sharpened, and used by the shepherds to defend against wolves. 4 as well as 2 legged. also used to end disputes. or as a hiking stick, it's primary purpose. they degenerated to brass as the authorities started to frown on sharp steel weapons being carried by the lower classes. the shepherds, having little to do most of the time, would carve the hafts into elaborate decorations, and colour them. more recently they are mostly made entirely out of wood and the decorations are painted on - for those who travel. sadly, the metal headed ones no longer used (openly) as weapons, tho still carried by some traditionalist shepherds & farmers. about a metre long. |
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#2 |
Lead Moderator European Armoury
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Portugal
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How old could this axe be, Wayne ?
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#3 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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they sometimes have dates carved into them, i'll know more when it arrives. probably less than 100 yrs, ie. 'vintage' at a guess 40-50 yrs old.
they're from the mountain regions of Carpathia (werewolf and vampire counrty ![]() some of my other shepherd's axes: assorted ages ![]() ![]() ![]() Last edited by kronckew; 10th February 2015 at 04:37 PM. |
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#4 |
Lead Moderator European Armoury
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Portugal
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Yes, 'vintage' ... and ethno !
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#5 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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european ethno
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#6 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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ciupaga arrived, semi-sharp brass head, haft well carved, 'ZAKOPANE' carved on one side, no date. brass but spike inset in butt, sheet brass bolster. languet and rings are brass, some tarnish between the rings & along the middle. brass head appears shiny new, but is covered in a clear varnish as is the wood.
appears to be a traditionally made ciupage for those who visit zakopane in their travels. latter half of the 20th c. or so...ie. fairly new. will make a nice hiking stick. i imagine it will scare the bears, panthers and wolves as i hike the wilds of the cotswold mountains here. i probably won't see a one, they'll be too scared. ![]() |
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#7 |
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 332
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Aaaahhh, I collect them too. They may be found even with a legit aluminum head, that can be tell by the white tarnish and crude finish.
As a rule of thumb, only the Polish cuipagga is fitted with rings along its top spine; post WWII have fewer small diameter rings (usually of brass) while older ones have more rings of larger diameter, made of steel and overlapping each other. My oldest one is dated 1888 and I have another one (finely made a looks like a custom presentation piece, not a touristic item)dated 1976 which I bought in Bratislava. The photo is from 1910 hungary. |
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#8 |
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Join Date: Jul 2013
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This is rather made for tourists. But I have some depictions from 17th cent:
First picture is probably late 16th cent woodcut depicting some party scene. Except not using sharp weapons so often, nothing really changed in mountains in this matter ![]() Next two are from late 17th early 18th cent. Drawings of axes are from Berestechko battle site (1651). You can see similar axes but I think slightly bigger. |
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#9 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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'won' another ebay orphan. no other bidders, cost less than postage.
brass head with edelweiss flower motif, plain haft, alpine spike. no details yet. looks unfinished in photo. head looks loose. haft may have shrunk & need resetting. from estate sale. will try better photos on arrival. |
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#10 |
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 332
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scroll down here, you will find some interesting things:
http://tatcalite.tripod.com/id68.htm |
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#11 |
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Room 101, Glos. UK
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arrived. head is loose as suspected but won't come all the way off. maybe a good soak in BLO will swell it.
33 in. long, more slender undecorated but old-looking haft than my others, substantial steel alpine spike of square x-section is set in a separate steel bolster, both with a dark patina. head has a nice 'used' patina, isn't the matt it appears to be in the above photo, more brassy look... i think this one is more vintage than the earlier fancy one, if not antique. |
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