Dayak weapons identification help please
 

Hi I'm new to the forum and new to Dayak weapons. I bought a couple of blades at an antique fair recently and was told that they were bought by a man in Indonesia in the 1950s and may have been used in shamanic practice. It's sparked an interest in Dayak weapons and I've been reading and researching since and would love to know more.

I'd be really interested to know more about each of them, as buying these has sparked an interest in Dayak weapons, if anybody could help me I'd be very grateful.

The weapon in the scabbard decorated with amulets/beads/pebbles etc is heavy and has a convex/concave blade. The holes in some of the pebbles are smooth and look as though they've been worn for many years. The coin inserted is Nederlands Indie 1/2 cent from 1945.

The weapon in the teeth scabbard and has a flat blade, which is shorter and more lightweight than the other weapon. Could this be either made for tourists or ceremonial?

I'd love to know which tribe each may be from, I wondered if they were Kayan? Or could they be from different tribes? I'd love to know about the markings and what the items attached represent? Particularly the small wooden figures, the markings that look a little like fish scales (with a dot in the middle) and the stones with holes in? (one pebble, shown on a photo at the top of an amulet has had a hole in it that long that it's smooth throughout). I call them hag stones, but wondered what the Dayak people call them and what they were for/represent? Anything else that people could tell me about them would be greatly appreciated.

I look forward to hopefully hearing from you lovely knowledgeable people. If anybody requires further photos I'd be happy to upload them.


Regards

Ade

Hard to tell, but these look like later mid-late 20th century mandaus. You see some of these made for the tourist trade. One of them might be for recent use than tourist, but again they all look very recent.

The one with the teeth and the painting represents a mandau of the Papoea from New Guinea. This one is a tourist item from the second half of the 20th century.

The other one looks nicer but is rather recent as well as Battara said. The coin could be added any time.

Before buying enthousiasticly i strongly advise you to study on this forum and look at the differences between the real stuff and tourist items.
Don't be disapointed. We all have collected items at the attic from our beginning period. :D

Welcome to the forum Ade,

Sadly I have to agree with Jose and Henk, both are very recent and the one with the teeth is clearly for those who travel, unsure about the other one.

Regards,
Detlef

I would like to see some more and better pictures from the blade with concave/convex blade profile, it could be an older blade with newer handle. A convex/concave blade profile is classic for mandaus while a flat blade by such a mandau is a sign for a tourist item.

Hi Ade
Welcome to the forum.
I can definitely tell you that you are in the correct place to learn and I hope you are not too disappointed with the news you are getting.

Ethnographic weaponry is a fascinating area to study and collect and the more you study the more you will get out of the hobby.

When you get into the hobby and you pick up genuine pieces you will instantly know they are good by the feel, smell, color and functionality.

I have several pieces I purchased which were tourist pieces but I still like them as they were an introduction into the hobby and did teach me something.

Hope to see more of you here and best of luck

Regards

Ken

Thanks everybody for your comments and advice it's much appreciated.

I have had a good read through the threads on mandaus and it certainly is a wealth of information,

I've attached some better pictures of the convex/concave blade to help with identification.

I look forward to more comments, thanks again,

Ade

Thank you for the additional pictures but I doubt that they are very helpful. The blade is worked in traditional manner, this is all I can say.

Regards,
Detlef

Welcome Ade, :)
Here's a link which may help:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...light=pakarang

Best,