Important Collection of Antique Asian Arms
Lot 109:
A rare form of Indonesian sword, this sword is called a sumara and is related to amore common style called a penai. The penai or the sumara are the machete sword of the Bareespeaking Toraja people. The hilts distinguish these swords and are formed with a ninety degreeangle and then two long protrusions finely carved in this case and which attribute this swordspecifically as a sumara. Both the penai and the sumara however have similar blades with theblade broadening towards the tip and turning in a slight curve towards the edge. These areconsidered to be true headhunters swords and those that are decorated with tin foil were reservedfor only the most renowned headhunters.The Toraja people were only converted to Christianity in the early 20th century and these swordshave a long tradition of usage in Toraja culture. According to Blair and Blair, the â€Å“Toraja huntedheads until as recently as the 1920s, but they were feared by their neighbours less for theirferocity than for their magic, part of which was their unnerving reputation for being able to causethe dead to walk. Toraja warriors had to die in their own ‘Rante, ‘ or village circle, if their soulswere successfully to return to the stars. Should they die beyond the Rante, then their shamans, the stories went, could quicken their corpses long enough for them to walk home under their ownsteam, even without their heads.†As late as WWII, this zombie folklore continued as â€Å“theoccupying Japanese forces had apparently been so terrified by the Toraja that after a fewerstwhile massacres they had left them to themselves. On several occasions groups of Torajaresistance fighters had been taken into the forest by the Japanese, machine-gunned, and left thereas a warning to others. Later in the evening their horrified executioners had reportedencountering them again, in serious disrepair, shambling in single file back through the foresttowards their Rante."This example in the Schmiedt Collection is in fine condition with a well toned carved grip. Theblade is a particularly fine example made of twistcore iron, an indication of the status of theowner and a rarity throughout the weapons of the Indonesian Archipelago.Total Length (inside scabbard if present) : 24 1/2" Blade Length : 19"References:1. Van Zonneveld, A.G. (2001) Traditional Weapons of the Indonesian Archipelago.Leiden: Art Books2. Blair, L., and Blair, L. (1988). Ring of Fire. Bantam Books.Detailed condition reports are not included in this catalog. For additional information, including condition reports, please contact us at [email protected]
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