Dagger from Philippines 1899
 

I just adquired this dagger in Ebay. I wish enjoy with pictures from seller
Any opinion is wellcome.
Thanks in advance
Carlos

Hi Carlos,

Very nice dagger. This is definitely an Ilokano knife. The prominent use of brass on the hilt is a strong indicator of Ilokano manufacture, as well as the brass sheath and the shape of the small cross guard. The clincher, however, is the name of the town "Bigan" (now "Vigan"--the B and V are sometimes interchanged in the Ilokano language), which is the capital of the Ilocos Sur province (also spelled Ylocos Sur) where sur means south.

So the inscription on your knife reads BIGAN (Y [Ilocos] SUR). FILIPINAS obviously means Philippines. LUZON is self-evident.

1899 is an early date on Ilokano knives. Mostly they were undated until about WWII when we saw an eruption of dated knives that are often called "Negrito" bolos but are actually Ilokano in style and manufacture.

Very attractive acquisition and I look forward to more pics when you get it. Congratulations!

Ian.

Hello Carlos, While I agree with Ian on everything he has stated I do at the same time believe that once this piece arrives and you have had time to give it a little TLC and a light cleaning you might find that all the hilts fittings are mostly silver/silver alloy with some brass accents thrown in. The scabbard as well could turn out to be a silver/silver alloy with brass decorations. This is a most beautiful piece that you have been very fortunate to add to your collection and if I had seen it before the auction had ended it would have cost you dearly. :D My congratulations to you on winning this wonderful piece. As usual, if you ever grow tired of looking at it you know that it will always have a home waiting for it with me.

Best,
Robert