A warriors Talibon?
 

Hello everybody,

Along with my interest in Nihonto and Keris, I love the humble Talibon. I do not know much about this sword dispite owning a large collection of said sword.

I am wondering about the unusual pommel, of which I have never seen on a Talibon before. Is this because the sword is a warriors sword? The overall length is 24". The blade itself is 18". Any help would be great!

Thanks,

William

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1...m/DSC_4578.jpg
http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1...m/DSC_4583.jpg
http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1...m/DSC_4579.jpghttp://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1...m/DSC_4580.jpg

THERE IS NOT A LOT WRITTEN ABOUT THESE KNIVES, I HAVE ALWAYS CALLED THEM TALIBION BECAUSE OF STONES GLOSSARY SOME ALSO CALL THEM GARAB. YOU CAN FIND SOME INFORMATION BY SEARCHING OLD POSTS IN THE OLD FORUMS USING THOSE NAMES.
THEY ARE PRIMARILY WORK KNIVES AND EVERYONE HAS ONE IN THE AREAS WHERE THEY ARE USED THE ONES OVER 18 INCHES TOTAL WERE MORE LIKELY TO HAVE BEEN USED AS WEAPONS. YOURS FALLS INTO THE LARGE ENOUGH TO BE USED AS A SHORT SWORD GROUP BUT WOULD ALSO MAKE A NICE JUNGLE KNIFE.
THE THING I ESPECIALLY LIKE ABOUT THE TALIBION IS MANY EXAMPLES HAVE BEEN PERSONALIZED I THINK YOURS FALLS INTO THOSE PERSONALIZED BY ITS OWNER AT LEAST AS FAR AS THE HANDLE IS CONCERNED. I HAVE SEEN MANY THAT APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN MADE BY A MASTER CARVER AND FOLLOW THE OLD TRADITIONAL HANDLE AND SCABBARD FORMS OF THE AREA. I HAVE ALSO SEEN SOME VERY CRUDE EXAMPLES AND SOME WITH VARYING QUALITY CARVINGS OF EVERYTHING FROM AIRPLANES TO ROOSTERS TO NAKED WOMEN.
THE BLADES ARE NOT A FORM I LIKE MUCH AND ARE USUALLY SOMEWHAT CRUDE, HAS ANYONE EVER SEEN ONE ENGRAVED OR WITH INLAY? PERHAPS MANY PEOPLE JUST BUY THE BLADES FROM TRADERS AND MAKE THEIR OWN FITTINGS OR REPLACE VERY CRUDE HANDLES AND SCABBARDS LATER. HERE ARE A COUPLE OF PICTURES OF WHAT I CONSIDER A TRADITIONAL FORM MADE BY A PROFESIONAL CARVER ON A LARGE SIZE EXAMPLE.

YOUR EXAMPLE IS DIFFERENT FROM ANY I HAVE SEEN AND LOOKS GOOD TO ME CONGRADULATIONS. :)

Hi Vandoo,

I will do a search using garab and talibion and see what else I can learn. Thank you very much for your post it was most informative. Most of my talibon have decent blades in that they have been heat treated which once etched you can see quite clearly. I personally love the blades as you can get some wonderful examples where the blade curves forward nicely.

Here is another Talibion of mine, would you describe the handle to be traditional?
http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1...unsword146.jpg

THE BLADE ON YOUR SECOND ONE IS UNUSUAL, THE HANDLE APPEARS TO BE THE SAME TRADITIONAL FORM AS THE ONE ABOVE BUT CARVED BY SOMEONE WHO WAS NOT A EXCELLENT WOOD CARVER. I AM NOT SURE WHAT THIS TRADITIONAL FORM REPRESENTS BUT TO ME IT LOOKS LIKE IT IS DERIVED FROM A FLOWER AND INCORPORATES THE NUMBER 3 AS IN 3 POINTS ON THE POMMEL. THERE IS BOUND TO BE SOME SIGNIFICENCE IN THE 3 POINTS PERHAPS SOMEONE ELSE WILL BE ABLE TO ENLIGHTEN US FURTHER. HERE ARE TWO MORE PICTURES ONE IS A VARIATION ON THE 3 PART TRADITIONAL THE OTHER IS THE OTHER MOST COMMON TRADITIONAL FORM WHICH MAY REPRESENT A HEAD AS YOUR FIRST EXAMPLE DOES. IT MAY ALSO JUST BE A GOOD WORKING DESIGN FOR THE HANDLE WHEN USING THE KNIFE FOR CHOPPING AS IT WOULD HELP KEEP THE KNIFE FROM SLIPPING FROM THE HAND. I HAVE NOT READ THIS IN A BOOK SO IT IS ONLY MY OPINION. :rolleyes: