Ian,
What I posted in 2003 for the most part holds true today, but only for a particular class of deity-hilt sundang from a particular region. The only addendum I would contribute now concerns the scabbard. The hanger-block evolution mentioned in that post is true for a certain sword. However, in other regions the hanger block is still used and made today. This helps identify the point of origin, not age. But there are probably a dozen or so aspects besides the hanger block on the scabbard alone to help determine point of origin and just as many aspects to help determine age...mostly aesthetic and some quite esoteric.
Then you have the sword itself. The blade alone has more than a dozen characteristics to look at to help determine point of origin and age....that's the easy part. Adding the hilt adds more aspects to investigate. There are probably over two dozen aesthetic and esoteric characteristics to look for in a deity-hilt or non-deity figural hilt pommel. And then you need to consider the rest of the hilt as well.
Once you look at every possible aspect of the whole sword, then it is possible to determine point of origin....sometimes as accurately within 20 km. The same holds true for age. But it's knowing what characteristics to look for and the region associated with those particular characteristics, that will help you identify the sundang, the point of origin, age, etc. Unfortunately, most of that information I'm bounded by confidentiality.
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