Piso Podang?

[ariel]

Despite being called Persian, I maintain that it is a Piso Podang from Sumatra.The handle is very strange: it looks almost like Piso Padang but the eaglehead pommel and the absense of a cavity are intriguing.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6622126800&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1
Any thoughts?

[Ian]

Ummmm :confused: -- is that the correct link Ariel?

[Rick]

Ariel , did you pick the wrong link ? :confused:

That's no Piso podang .........

Here's an unusual variant .

[ariel]

Mea culpa.
Rick, your pic is correct.
Here is the correct link.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6621639712&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1

[Rick]

I thought that might have been the one that you meant ( I was unaware the auction had ended ) .
A Brother sword hilt in white brass ?
This makes the third example of this style of piso hilt that I have seen .
The blades always seem to vary and I can see this blade is quite pitted .

[ariel]

Well, we might have found a new pattern.
Any ideas about it's origin and the meaning for the difference?
The cavity is supposed to have ritual significance; why isn't it present here? What about the Eagle? Isn't it one of the avatars of Vishnu? Piso Podang came to Sumatra from India (see Elgood's book).

[Ian]

Guys:

Might this not be a depiction of garuda?

Ian.

[Rick]

Absolutely no idea about the hilt symbolism .
Could be Garuda ....... < shrugs >

One of our members once told me that it resembles an indo military sword ; but There is no consistency in the blades ; mine has a finely forged native blade with very good temper and a hardened edge .
I got mine from a Canadian Seller on Ebay years ago .

Until we know more I think this hilt form will remain a mystery .

[Ian]

Depiction of garuda on the Indonesian Coat of Arms.

Ian.

[Rick]

One would think that if this is an Indo military sword there would be many examples around .
Also , why the Piso/Batak type quillons when they are Sumatran and many are Christian etc. ?
Mercenaries ?

A Batak regiment ? :confused:

[CharlesS]

Definitely a piso podang. I saw one at the Las Vegas show that was very similar.

I think Ian's point about the garuda is a very good one.

[mmontoro]

I think Garuda, too. Here's another pretty common example that I've seen referred to as a Garuda hilt.

http://home.swbell.net/mmontoro/resized_golok_hilt.jpg

[Rick]

What puzzles me about this piso hilt form (let's accept that it is garuda) is that there are no other figural types of piso hilts that I know of .

I wonder ; was this hilt form supplied to a certain group of Batak ; possibly Mercs for the government ?

If this was the case I would expect uniformity of blades and hilt materials . :confused:

[ariel]

And what about the absent "inverted cup" cavity?

[Ian]

Indonesian independence was proclaimed on August 17, 1945. Departure from the traditional cup hilt for a more nationalistic depiction of garuda would seem to imply a relatively recent change (perhaps early to mid-20th C.). Would that fit the age of these pieces?

Ian.

[Rick]

I would think if that were the case we would be seeing more of these swords .
The newer ones should be more common IMO .

The example Ariel shows seems to be quite pitted and has a manufactured blade ; it would surprise me to see a tribe or portion thereof go ga ga over independence to the point of rehilting their traditional swords . :confused:


One wonders how thrilled the Sumatran populace as a whole is at being ruled from Jawa anyway .