Silver Dha For Comment

[~Alaung_Hpaya~]

It's 33 inch long with a silver mounted hilt inlaid with bands of woven silver and copper. The blade is reasonably heavy with good balance and the silver and copper koftgari features designs of a hare , a deer and a cockerel. It shows no signs of actual use and would presumably have been made as a presentation piece . Scabbard also in good condition but possibly missing a few silver or copper bands .


Any comments please .


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/azsilver008.jpg


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/azsilver011.jpg


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/azsilver020.jpg


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/azsilver016.jpg

[DhaDha]

I like this one a lot. I have one with a similar handle. I'll try to find a pic....
Shawn

[Rick]

Could you please resize these so that they fit the page (800 X 600) ? :)

[ariel]

" Around the Dha in 80 days" :D

[Andrew]

Very pretty, Alaung. I like the koftgari themes.

I'd say well-executed mid 20th century work. Burmese.

[~Alaung_Hpaya~]

I'm thinking Burmese ( more specifically ethnic Bama ) probably 20th century ( preindependence ? 1900 - 1940 ) but not from anything in particular but simply the "newness" of it and its similarity to GC Stones Dha 5. below.

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/GCStoneDhaSmaller.jpg



What details do you look at to determine / guestimate the age ?

[Andrew]

.

What details do you look at to determine / guestimate the age ?

Frankly, it's more of a "feel" thing for me, until I sit down and really think about it. ;) Let me, also, preface my comments with the obligatory disclaimer about the difficulties inherent in evaluating an item only from photographs.

The first thing that jumps out at me is the crispness of the silverwork on the handle and koftgari. The vegetal theme of the koftgari is a more recent style, and is often seen on "tourist" quality knives and swords, usually in smaller sections. (I'm not, however, suggesting your sword is one of these, just that the thin vine koftgari is of similar style--very well executed).

The metal-work on the scabbard is in an older style, but looks newly made.

Overall, I think this is a nice sword, and I'd be pleased to have it in my collection. I particularly like dha with copper work mixed in with silver.

[Ian]

Hi Alaung:

I would like to echo Andrew's comments. The "serrated" metal work on the hilt is, I believe, a post WWII design. I've not seen that cut out, saw tooth, appearance on a dha confidently dated earlier than about 1945. The style of silver inlay on the balde is of a decorative form dating from the 19th C to the present, but, as Andrew has noted, the purely vegetal designs of silver inlay probably date from the late 19th/early 20th C to the present.

The metalwork on the scabbard is also of late 19th/early 20th C style and later, with a Chinese influence IMO.

Overall a very nice example. Not so old but very well done.

Ian.

[~Alaung_Hpaya~]

Thanks guys for the info.


Can you show me some other examples of similar swords with these vegetal themes or with the serrated metal work . I have only come across one other on Oriental Arms which features an elephant as one of its creatures.


Thanks in advance.


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/zaw-gyi/azsilver002.jpg