New Ebay Find
 

Nothing real exciting but this Visayan plamingko is still a nice little item. Not sure of the age of this piece and the blade is a V grind and not the chisel grind that I would expect from an item from this region. Any and all information on this piece would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Robert

Rob

Very nice find :). Probably Visayan circa 1935-45?

Hello Lew. and thank you for your thoughts on this. I was thinking 1920/!940 so at least I was close on my estimate of age. Is it normal for these to have this style of blade profile? Most Visayan items that I have seen seem to have chisel ground blades. There is another almost identical to this one that was posted by Zelbone located in this thread http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ight=plamingko that he states to be "a really old old bolo of the "plamenko" form" that looks to be about 16 inches in length while the one I have posted is only 11 inches in length. I only have two of these and the other has a completely different hilt style and no scabbard banding. It though has the more traditional chisel ground blade with a very plain horn hilt. I have added a picture of the knife itself below for comparison. I will add another picture later that will show the scabbard as I do not have one at the moment that has the tape that was wrapped around it removed. Thanks again.

Robert

Nice little knife! :) I every time have thought that I am good by find ebay sleepers but you are better! :D Haven't seen this one.

Best,

Detlef

Thank you for your kind words Detlef. If it were not for sleepers I'm afraid that I would not be able to add very many new items to my collection. This little gem went for for less than a trip to McDonald's for just myself and the wife would have been. :D

Best,
Robert

Hello,
The Ilonggo plamenko is almost always double-beveled or V-ground. It is rare to find one that is chisel ground. This is due to the nature of the plamenko and its original intended use as a large general purpose knife with a broad blade. The Ilonggo plamenko and its cousin the Akeanon sanduko (not to be confused with the sanduko sword of Capiz) are highly regarded as general purpose knives/weapons throughout Panay. You will see more of these in markets used to cut vegetables, butcher meat, and slice fish. As a weapon, it is used mainly for thrusting.

The other knife you pictured is not a plamenko, but rather a left-handed kutsilyo since the blade is chisel-ground and also not broad enough to be classified as a plamenko. The hilt also lacks the typical knob pommel of the larger plamenko.

Hope this helps.
Regards,
Bangkaya

Bangkaya, Thank you very much for the correct name of the second knife that I have posted above. It is always been a difficult task for me to decide what exactly to call most Philippine edged weapons. :confused: So when someone can place a name on any of the new ones that I acquire "and cannot find an example exactly like it to help in itsidentificationn" it is always of great help and sincerely appreciated. I would then assume that the kutsilyo would be another form of general utility knife like the plamingko ? Again thank you for your help and I would also like to add, welcome to the forum.

Regards,
Robert

Hello Robert,
Kutsilyo is the Filipino-bastardized term for the Spanish cuchillo....or knife. So you are correct that it's just a plain utility knife. Your example is fine typical example of an Ilonggo "kutsilyo." A few years ago while strolling through a palenke (market) in Iloilo, I ran across a vendor selling bladed tools and weapons. Out of curiosity, I pointed to a knife similar to yours and asked him what he called it. His reply was "kutsilyo" as well as several onlookers. He also pointed out a plamenko, a binangon, and a ginunting to me as well. Later on when I was in Makato, Aklan I also asked a vendor in a palanke the same question to his wares. Pointing to a similar knife I was expecting a different name, but he too said it was a "kutsilyo." I now make a habit of this when I visit different palenkes throughout the Philippines to see any regional and linguistic differences. But it seems "kutsilyo" is the most poplular term for a knife throughout the islands. Sorry I couldn't be more specific.

Regards,
Bangkaya

Here is another similar yours, i bought ir years ago in Ebay.
best regards
carlos

Hello Carlos, Yes this is very similar to the one that I have posted in everything but the hilt. I can honestly say that I have never seen a hilt style like the one that your plamingko has before.:confused: Very nice, now I will have to see if I can find one like it for my own collection. :D Thank you for posting such an interesting item for comparison.

Regards,
Robert