Luzon itak?
 

Just win this Luzon bolo, think it is an itak? Am I correct? I like the unusal shape of the blade. Sadly there is no scabbard. 27" long.

What you think about?

Yes you are correct. Might even be Tagalog.......

Thank you Jose! :)

Can you explain please the different between a Luzon and Tagalog itak?

Regards,

Detlef

Well, Luzon is the northern large island of the Philippines. The Tagalog "tribe" or ethno-linguistic group lives on the southern part of Luzon. Since there are several groups living on Luzon, pinpointing to what group a piece belongs is obviously even better.

I hope I wasn't confusing. :o

Thank you for clarification! No, you wasn't confusing, but I was unsure. ;)

Great sword Detlef. The seven sided hilt on this piece I believe to be a rarer form than the more common octagon or tear-drop shaped ones. Very nice catch.

Robert

Thank you Robert,

frankly said I don't have seen a seven sided hilt before. I wonder if you haven't seen it at the bay (http://www.ebay.com/itm/ANTIQUE-SWOR...vip=true&rt=nc) , I think it was a little bargain.

Regards,

Detlef

Trust me, if I had seen this listing before you did I would be the one posting it here. :D

:D :D :D

This made me look at my septagonal-hilted bolo. It's rather touristirific, with a fat chunky grip. Nice blade; I used it as a working blade this morning. The state of my camera keeps me from posting photos at the moment :(

Have received the itak, good heavy and old sword with a fault. Someone have regrind the very last tip of the blade very unprofessional. Here some pictures.

:shrug:

Also at this blade my friend has worked and has done a very good job! I wasn't happy with badly grinded tip of the blade which now look good again. The blade has get also a polish and etch and shows a subtle lamination. Interestingly there are visible on both sides of the blade two finger prints after etching. My friend told me that he has seen them after etching and has polished this places again but after etching they has been visible again! :eek: :shrug: He think that it could be that a previous owner has touched the blade with bloody fingers. Here some pictures.

Hello Detlef, Your friend has done another very nice job of straightening out the damaged point on this piece too. As for why the fingerprints on the blade keep showing up after etching, I am afraid that I cannot be of any help in trying to explain why this keeps happening. Being less than graceful I unfortunately am prone to lacerating my fingertips on a regular basis when cleaning certain items in my collection and have never had this happen. Even after having the blood remain on the piece for several days it has always cleaned up with no problems and never shown up after etching. :shrug:

Best,
Robert

Hi Detlef:

I've not seen blood stains on a blade survive a good polish and etch before. Generally these are the same as rust. If you take the surface off, then the stain should not return.

Instead of fingerprints I think the marks may be "chatter" arising from grinding of the blade. If you look at the close up pictures of the brass, you can see residual lines from grinding also. A little persistent rust within the grooves on the blade would lead to a recurring pattern on re-etching. Removing more metal would likely solve the problem.

Given the sloppy work done previously along the back edge near the tip, I wonder if this was previously one of the long knives that the Spanish required Filipinos to square off the tip and "de-weaponize" in the late 19th C. When the owner wanted to make it more weapon-like, he could have ground back the original squared off end to create something more deadly. Just a thought.

Ian.

Hi Ian,

agree with you, it look clearly like rust. My first thought have been that the prints are from touching the blade after neutralization with etching solution. After receiving the sword I've tried to polish away the "print" on one side with steel wool without success. I think that I have to living with it.

Regards,
Detlef