Important Collection of Antique Asian Arms
Lot 195:
This is a classic sword of the Moro people of the southern Philippines and of the Sulu Sea area called a kris. The classic Moro kris is based heavily on the Indonesian keris but is distinctly larger and made purposefully for fighting. The kris has always been the most famous of all Moro weapons and there are a wide set of variation of blade types, handle forms, and materials. Generally all kris blades are wide at the base, double-edged, and can be waved, half-waved half-straight, or straight in which case they were more practical in combat. Older kris had fewer waves and the waves were deeper and wider. Higher quality Moro kris would be mounted with twistcore blades were formed through stacking a set of a set of iron rods that would each be twisted, and depending upon the ultimate pattern desired, the rods be twisted either to the left or right or allowed to remain straight along the length of the rod. Rods with matching or complementary twist patterns could be installed side-by-side into an iron billet which was then forged into a sword blade. After grinding away the outer surfaces of the rods this would disclose a pattern in the iron (Jones).One of the additional ways in which origins are identified are through the design of the elephant head trunk and cavity of the ganja. Generally Sulu kris have cavities which are elliptical in shape. The mouth cavity and lower jaw point downwards towards the base of the guard. Certain Mindanao kris have a similar form except that the mouth is round instead of oval and is not angled. The Maguindanao form is very similar to the Sulu style with an elliptical shape but it is not angled downwards and instead runs perpendicular to the guard. Later versions of this generally exhibit a ridge which has been chiseled into the outer metal that surrounds both sides of the mouth hollow. The Maranao form has an elongated trunk while the mouth cavity is narrow and the lower jaw runs parallel to the guard. While Sulu and Maguindanao forms have a concave cavity beneath the lower jaw, the Maranao form does not and instead has a protrusion that juts out from beneath it (Cato 1996).This example in the Schmiedt Collection is a good early example with a classic Sulu style kakatua form pommel. The handle itself of plaited twine, with very clean cast silver bands at the base of the handle and pommel that are a distinctive Sulu stylistic attribute. The double asang-asang are in silver and finely formed. A more ornate Sulu kris is illustrated in Wetzler (2020) and which has this angularity to the grip. The 5 luk blade is a superb example of a twistcore steel blade with an archaic shape indicated by the fullering at the base of the blade, the ganja, and the twistcore pattern. While the style is in the archaic form, archaic blades often display softer wave crests while the base crest on this blade is more angular in form and therefore pushesthis example into the 19th century as opposed to an 18th century dating. Furthermore, the handle and kakatua have a flatter form on the sides, also indicating slightly later dating than the 18th century.Dating to the 19th century.Total Length (inside scabbard if present) : 28" Blade Length : 21 1/4"References:1. Cato, R. (1996) Moro swords. Graham Brash: Singapore2. Barados, D., (1995) Land of the Morning: Treasures of the Philippines, San Francisco Craft & Folk Museum, 1995.3. Casal, G. et al, (1981) The People and Art of the Philippines, UCLA Museum of Cultural History4. Krieger, H. W. (1926). The collection of primitive weapons and armor of the Philippine islands in the United States National museum. Washington: Govt. Print. Off.5. Macao Museum of Art. (2007). History of Steel in East Asia. Macao Museum of Art. Macau6. Wetzler, S. (2020) Steel and Magic. Edged Weapons of the Malay Archipelago. Edition Fichter, Frankfurt am Main7. Jones, L. Blade Patterns Intrinsic to Steel Edged Weapons, 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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