The small panabas pictured here has quite a bit of edge damage and a bullet wound to boot.

Here are four of my favorite panabas,(panabi ?).

Hello IP,

Figs. 525 and 526 as well as my example from post #26 are typical blades from SE Sulawesi. The steel tends to be of good quality and the crafted pamor may be basic, sometimes quite blotchy laminations to twistcore or other exquisite pattern welding. Due to the long hilt, the not very heavy blades are quite agile (at least compared to the pade and even belida blades which tend to be heavier).

Those axe-like blades from Solor/Adonara seem to be quite plain and probably locally crafted from imported steel.


Don't underestimate the tropical distances though; some cultures were much more landlocked than others. There was an extensive trade network operated by seafaring cultures for times pretty much immemorial. OTOH, many local peoples traveled rarely if ever.


Many of the groups are so remote/small/etc. that hardly anything is known about their genuine MAs in the ol' days. Moreover, we need to be extremely careful with any generalisations, especially considering the extreme diversity.

However, it seems to be true that direct blade to blade contact is usually much more avoided than in medieval and later Europe; binding is not a common strategy.

Edge damage is certainly not rare though with many old blades; however, the edges are usually keen and well maintained during active service. You usually see the effects of constant sharpening, etc. At some point, old blades get either worn down and recycled or retired into more ceremonial usage. TLC over extended periods tends to obscure signs of prior use.

Regards,
Kai

Drac2k, gorgeous Panabas’. First one I’ve seen with a centipede / millipede.
Thanks for sharing.

Thank you Kino; I posted it earlier under the title of "Unusual Panabas," which has detailed pictures if you care for a closer look.

Thanks for the samples everyone- just caught up with all the posts now. I'm really interested regarding panabas varieties because it's my personal theory that each panabas type is suited for a specific purpose- like there are panabas that are hybrid (all-rounder), fighting-only, and ceremony-only. But so far all the panabas in this thread look potent!

Not as sure but my thoughts are that this belongs not to a datu but to a higher ranking person within a datu's retinue. Thus the reason for the carved end, copper bands, and silver strip on the hilt.

I also wonder if this is a form of fighting panabas for a high ranking warrior under the same datu.

Also Drack2, since the first time you posted your beautiful panabas (which one day you will donate to me, right? :D ) I found out that the centipede motif is sign of dangerous power and in tattoo form or engraved empowers the person or weapon with it.

Okay, it's on the bucklist; now I just have to figure out how I'm going to tell my wife that I will be getting a centipede tattoo to go with my panabas.

Hello IP,

The one on the blue background I've shown in post #16 has a lot of nicks at the edge.

Regards,
Detlef

Hello Drac2k,

Stunning panabas, the one with the centipede! :eek:

Regards,
Detlef

Thank you Sajen as I like both of yours as well, especially the shorter one; I looked closely at your panabas in a previous post of yours, and the designs with the segmented body and a stylized mouth also reminded me of a centipede. What do you think?

Hello Drac2k,

Never thought in this direction but with some imagination this could be indeed a stylized centipede.
What think other members?

Regards,
Detlef

I too hadn't thought of that, although I have never seen any research of how Maguindanao and Maranao okir would be used for making a centipede. I do think it is a possibility. Among the Igorots like the Kalinga, Tinguian, and possibly the Bontoc, even half a stylized geometric centipede still represents a centipede and it's potent power.

Another example more ...

Panabi
 

Decided to a jump in on this and add to the reference photos.

Hi All,

Here are my two. The haft on the Padsumbalin appears to have been taken from a hatchet. There is a small, round, copper token (stamped 343) attached to the haft. A former item from military stores that found a home in civilian life perhaps? The blade is a bit loose in the haft (especially in winter) and it may have had an additional steel ferrule at the very top.

Sincerely,
RobT

Very nice samples! I've noticed that panabas with short handles and long blades tend to be older. I've seen a couple of references pointing to 1800s as the era by which these short-hilted beasts proliferated- while for early 1900s onwards, the panabas evolved to be more proportionate in terms of hilt : blade measurements.

What an elegant sample Rick!

Sorry I couldn't help but notice the barung on top- does that have a clipped upper edge?

Nice panabas! I'm inclined to think the two larger ones are about the same age as mine. I've not encountered the small one that much, but I read somewhere else in this forum that it's supposedly an older version. There were reproductions of it that have been sold in Mindanao until the 90s.

No, not clipped Xas. :)