Mandau identification request

jestuart21 · 2nd April 2015, 04:56 AM

Hello All!

I recently acquired a sword that I believe to be a Dayak Mandau. However I am a complete novice and is likely I have no idea what I'm talking about.

My company moved buildinga at the end of 2014 and held an auction for all the art. I thought the sword was cool so I bought it. Now three months and countless hours of research later, I'm still not sure what I have. Here's what I do know:

- It has elephant carvings on the handle, I can't really tell what the handle was carved from. Any insight that could be offered on the possible material would be greatly appreciated.
- I have been told that the frame was high quality and expensive. I'm hoping that signifies that the sword was not made for the tourist trade.
- My employer stated that it was acquired at least 40 years ago but I have no way of verifying that.

Any knowledge that the forum can provide will be greatly appreciated.

VANDOO · 2nd April 2015, 04:41 PM

IT IS A MANDAU FROM BORNEO, THE CARVING ON THE HANDLE IS GOOD AND CARVED FROM DEER ANTLER BUT I DON'T THINK IT REPRESENTS AN ELEPHANT THOUGH I DO SEE WHAT YOU SEE. THE DESIGNS ON HANDLE, FIBER KNOT WORK AND SCABBARD ARE TYPICAL DAYAK DESIGNS. YOU CAN FIND QUITE A LOT OF INFORMATION USING THE FORUM SEARCH FUNCTION ON VARIOUS WEAPONS FROM BORNEO.
THIS SWORD APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN BOUGHT NEW AND BROUGHT BACK AS A SOUVENIR, THE LAST 40 YEARS WOULD BE LIKELY. IT IS A GOOD EXAMPLE THE ONLY NEGATIVE THING I SEE IS THE WAY THE METAL WAS CRUDELY CUT OUT ON THE BLADE TIP, I HAVEN'T SEEN IT DONE LIKE THAT BEFORE.

jestuart21 · 3rd April 2015, 10:04 PM

Vandoo, thanks for your analysis. I would be interested to hear more about the cuts on the blade tip. Has anyone ever seen this done before? Any discussion on why the cuts were made would be much appreciated.

Thanks

2nd April 2015, 04:56 AM	#1
jestuart21 Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Houston Posts: 2	Mandau identification request Hello All! I recently acquired a sword that I believe to be a Dayak Mandau. However I am a complete novice and is likely I have no idea what I'm talking about. My company moved buildinga at the end of 2014 and held an auction for all the art. I thought the sword was cool so I bought it. Now three months and countless hours of research later, I'm still not sure what I have. Here's what I do know: - It has elephant carvings on the handle, I can't really tell what the handle was carved from. Any insight that could be offered on the possible material would be greatly appreciated. - I have been told that the frame was high quality and expensive. I'm hoping that signifies that the sword was not made for the tourist trade. - My employer stated that it was acquired at least 40 years ago but I have no way of verifying that. Any knowledge that the forum can provide will be greatly appreciated. Attached Images

2nd April 2015, 04:41 PM	#2
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	IT IS A MANDAU FROM BORNEO, THE CARVING ON THE HANDLE IS GOOD AND CARVED FROM DEER ANTLER BUT I DON'T THINK IT REPRESENTS AN ELEPHANT THOUGH I DO SEE WHAT YOU SEE. THE DESIGNS ON HANDLE, FIBER KNOT WORK AND SCABBARD ARE TYPICAL DAYAK DESIGNS. YOU CAN FIND QUITE A LOT OF INFORMATION USING THE FORUM SEARCH FUNCTION ON VARIOUS WEAPONS FROM BORNEO. THIS SWORD APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN BOUGHT NEW AND BROUGHT BACK AS A SOUVENIR, THE LAST 40 YEARS WOULD BE LIKELY. IT IS A GOOD EXAMPLE THE ONLY NEGATIVE THING I SEE IS THE WAY THE METAL WAS CRUDELY CUT OUT ON THE BLADE TIP, I HAVEN'T SEEN IT DONE LIKE THAT BEFORE.

3rd April 2015, 10:04 PM	#3
jestuart21 Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Houston Posts: 2	Vandoo, thanks for your analysis. I would be interested to hear more about the cuts on the blade tip. Has anyone ever seen this done before? Any discussion on why the cuts were made would be much appreciated. Thanks