A Piso Podang With An Unusual Blade

[CharlesS]

This is a 19th Century piso podang sword with a very interesting blade that almost seems to be a marriage of a dha blade shape and mandau style fullering. The fullers are very crisp. There is stylized floral motif cartouche towards the forte embraced by the tapering fullers. The motif almost reminds me of paisley.

I've never seen one remotely similar, blade-wise, and would love to see other examples of this style if forum members would be willing to share pics.

[VVV]

Interesting mix of styles (as usual when you show swords).
Based on the hilt I think this isn´t a Batak PP but a NW Borneo Pedang.
The "paisley-motif" on the blade also look like the NW Borneo coast.

Michael

[CharlesS]

Thanks Michael....good to hear from you!

I was thinking Borneo too...but because of the blade, especially the fullering.

Maybe you could do a post on comparative hilt styles and origins??

[Maurice]

What a beautiful sword!
I just received this link from a friend of mine.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyMNwDW4S7w&feature=related
FREEZE it at 30 seconds.

Maurice

[CharlesS]

Thanks Maurice!

That is a very interesting video.....I only wish that piso podang would have found its way out of the scabbard!!!

Thanks for sharing that.

[Sajen]

Very nice and outstanding sword!

[Aleksey G.]

Guys, I was wondering if anybody knows what is the meaning or significance of the gold/brass sections on the spine of the blades? I see'em on blades from quite a few cultures? Thank you.

[VVV]

Nice film Maurice!
Aleksey, on the brass/gold some say decoration only, some say metaphysical reasons...
Charles, make a forum search on Iban Pedang for more examples and comments on the Borneo variation.
It´s not that easy with the hilts but here are some hints, not "laws", that mostly seems to work for ID:
- Usually the one with motifs like yours are Borneo.
- The open cup-pommels usually are Batak.
- The closed cup-pommels could be both but seems to be most often Borneo.
- The ones with "crusader-like" cross-pieces are probably Batak.

But some of the ones that fit the Borneo description above could also be Peninsular Malay.
Like everything else it´s a safer guess when you find several hints on the same sword.

Michael

[Maurice]

An old picture in the book of A.W. Nieuwenhuis!
1894-1900.

[Maurice]

Front Cover of Iban Art!

[Maurice]

A picture of an Iban pedang in the book "Living in Sarawak" .

[Maurice]

Old Iban photo's with pedang!

[Maurice]

The Pedang was not only used by the seadayaks (Iban's) in Borneo.
But it was also in use by the Dusun's in North East of Borneo.
Here what I found in the book of Evans (who visited Sabah between 1910 and 1911 and in 1915).
An old photo of a Dusun with a pedang (and the text that belongs to it).

And some phrases in the book that are important regarding the mentioned pedang.

[VVV]

Here is additional info on this kind of sword among the Dusun from an article by Evans, published in 1912:

"Once, nevertheless, at Tuaran I was witness of a small portion of a head-hunting ceremony. Seven or eight men were walking in single file near a village and were keeping up a continual war cry, which had a peculiar whistling sound. Each man was wearing a ceremonial sword with a very long scabbard that was profusely decorated with human hair. This sword is called "Tenumpassuan," it consists of a straight blade about 2 1/2 feet long and a brass grip with guards; when combined with a short sheath it is usually known as "pedang." The scabbard of the tenumpassuan is about 4 feet long and broadens out to a width of 6 inches at its further end, The outer face is covered with rude carving."

Michael

And some additional reference pictures of the pedang. The drawing seems to be the same guy as the picture above that Maurice posted.

[ariel]

I posted this one once, but nobody commented...
Other than feeling rejected :-) I still have a question: is the solid pommel indicative of Borneo, what is the origin of the blade and how was it carried ( see small rings on the scabbard.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1706&highlight=piso+podang

[VVV]

Sorry if you took it that way ;)
The reason I didn´t comment is that I don´t know because I haven´t seen anything like it before.
It doesn´t look like Borneo however. Neither does it look Batak.
The blade is straight so it isn´t a PP either but a chenangkas, if it´s from the Malay region.
Maybe somebody else has some clues?

Michael

[CharlesS]

Ariel,

Based on the rings on the throat, or locket, mount...I'd say it was carried using a rather standard baldric, which would have worked far better for the shorter model you have shown, than for the far longer ones.

I don't think I have ever seen one of the longer chenangkas with ring mounts for a baldric.

[pallas]

the fullers remind me of many bikaner armory weapons ive seen.......broadswords and tulwars....

[CharlesS]

I am only now noticing the closed hilt pommel on that one, and, like Michael, I am a litttle mystified by its origins.

[CharlesS]

Thanks for these terrific old photos and drawings. I think little is more exciting for we collectors than to see the items we cherish in the hands the cultures and people that originally actually made and used them.

The old photos are just magnificent!

Thanks again!

[Jim McDougall]

Guys, I was wondering if anybody knows what is the meaning or significance of the gold/brass sections on the spine of the blades? I see'em on blades from quite a few cultures? Thank you.


Aleksey has asked a very interesting question here, and I'm surprised nobody has answered with all the expertise here in this field.
While way outside my usual fields of study, it seems that these transverse lines in numerics of three usually ? do occur on various SE Asian swords. I've see them on dha, and some others, but usually scribed lines, not brass filled.

In Borneo there are often pierced holes in many parang ihlang, which are sometimes filled with brass but as if some are filled while some arent. Some have suggested these as tally numbers, but I dont think that has been generally accepted.

Best regards,
Jim

[Maurice]

In Borneo there are often pierced holes in many parang ihlang, which are sometimes filled with brass but as if some are filled while some arent. Some have suggested these as tally numbers, but I dont think that has been generally accepted. Hello Jim,

I don't know exactly what you mean by tally number (my english is a bit limited, sorry for that), but I think that you mean that every pierced hole filled, is standing for every head that was taken by the sword.


This is not likely, because of the following reasons:

1. Some swords have so many filled holes, that it is impossible to represent the number of heads.

2. Mr. Tromp wrote in his article around 1887 about Kutai mandaus, that it was denied, when he asked if it could be that the holes representing the taken heads.

3. Also it is not likely that the dayaks did want to heat up a by blood "loaded" sword after taking a head, to put a little hole in it.


Kind Regards,
Maurice

[VVV]

Aleksey has asked a very interesting question here, and I'm surprised nobody has answered with all the expertise here in this field.
While way outside my usual fields of study, it seems that these transverse lines in numerics of three usually ? do occur on various SE Asian swords. I've see them on dha, and some others, but usually scribed lines, not brass filled.

In Borneo there are often pierced holes in many parang ihlang, which are sometimes filled with brass but as if some are filled while some arent. Some have suggested these as tally numbers, but I dont think that has been generally accepted.

Best regards,
Jim

It seems that nobody "knows" for sure why so that´s why there hasn´t been any answers.
There are however some speculations that I find the most probable.
Like I wrote before it looks nice and it could have talismanic meanings.
Some probable talismanic meanings could be:
- the belief that some people are invulnerable to steel. This means that the sword needs to have another metal in it to be able to hurt them.
- the inlay metal could come from a source imbued with special powers.
- the inlay in numbers also have an esoteric meaning like AUM (=3), the trisula (=3), the Archangels (4) etc.
That´s my ideas based on what I have found in the different sources on local beliefs within this region.

Michael

[Maurice]

Charles,


I found another photo of a dayak dancer. It is a photo (for sure before 1955)found in the Tropenmuseum database.
Hard to see, but an increasing photo will show such pedang.

Regards,
Maurice

[Rick]

:) :) :)

[Maurice]

Thanks Rick for proving I am telling the truth ! :)

[Rick]

I wish I knew something about my eagle head example . :(

[Maurice]

Another old photo of an iban dajak.

[asomotif]

:) :cool:

[Maurice]

Hi Willem,

That is a cool image. I did miss that one when you posted it.
Great image, and a cool modernised head hunter...

I found another old image on an postcard.
It seems that the fellow on the left took the photographers head after shooting the picture.:D

Here it is!

[Royston]

More photos pulled off the net.

Oops - Just realised one is already posted.

Roy

[Maurice]

About the images that Roy posted:
Notice the great decoration piece on the dancing dajak on his mandau belt.
Great piece of anggang gading (hornbill ivory) and beads....

Thank you for this image Roy!

[ronpakis]

who is carrying some skulls also carries this type of sword. im sorry the picture is damaged so i couldnt upload it.

[Royston]

This one ?

Roy

[ronpakis]

yes, thats it, thanks!

[ronpakis]

this is a real picture postcard. the two guys o the outsides are carrying the same type of swords. they are from the palembang region. am i making it a litlle bit more complex??

greets ron