Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

migueldiaz · 8th November 2008, 01:01 AM

Here's some more early-1900s impressions on the Cordillera battle axe. This time we go back to Albert Jenks' The Bontoc Igorot --

The mystery of the bad haircut finally explained

"The hair of the head is black, straight, coarse, and relatively abundant ... [t]he front is 'banged' low and square across the forehead, cut with the battle-ax ..."

Can be used to groom facial hair, too:

"The scanty growth of hair on the face of the Bontoc man is pulled out. A small pebble and the thumb nail or the blade of the battle-ax and the bulb of the thumb are frequently used as forceps ..."

The men used the battle axe in the kitchen as well:

"Its [the chicken's] legs were severed from the body with the battle-ax and put in the pot. From its front it was then cut through its ribs with one gash."

The axe is considered as one of the man's treasured possessions:

"With the men are buried, besides the things interred with the married men, the basket-work hat, the basket-work sleeping hat, the spear, the battle-ax, and the earrings if any are possessed."

The axe is even used for branding:

"These eastern horses are not used by the Igorot except for food, and no property right is recognized in them, though the Igorot brands them with a battle-ax brand."

Here's one unexpected and amusing use!:

"The foreskin is cut lengthwise on the upper side for half an inch. Either a sharp, blade-like piece of bamboo is inserted in the foreskin which is cut from the inside, or the back point of a battle-ax is stuck firmly in the earth, and the foreskin is cut by being drawn over the sharp point of the blade."

Even on crime and punishment it figures:

"There is an egg test said to be the surest one of all. A battle-ax blade is held at an angle of about 60 degrees, and an egg is placed at the top in a position to slide down. Just before the egg is freed from the hand the question is asked 'Is Liod (the name of the man under trial) guilty?' If the egg slides down the blade to the bottom the man named is innocent but if it sticks on the ax he is guilty."

A battle axe is sometimes a common property:

"Through inheritance two or more people become joint owners of single carabao, and of small herds which they prefer to own in common, pending such an increase that the herd may be divided equally without slaughtering an animal. Until recent years two, three, and even four or five men jointly owned one battle-ax."

Finally, a brief historical sketch:

"The feeling of friendship between the Igorot and insurrectos [Filipino nationalists] was so strong that when the insurrectos asked the Igorot to go to Manila to fight the new enemy (the Americans), 400 warriors, armed only with spear, battle-ax, and shield, went a three weeks’ journey to get American heads. At Caloocan, just outside Manila, they met the American Army early in February, 1899. They threw their spears, the Americans fired their guns—“which must be brothers to the thunder,” the Igorot said—and they let fall their remaining weapons, and, panic stricken, started home. All but thirteen arrived in safety. They are not ashamed of their defeat and retreat; they made a mistake when they went to fight the Americans, and they were quick to see it. They are largely blessed with the saving sense of humor, and some of the warriors who were at Caloocan [now northern Metro Manila] have been known to say that they never stopped running [i.e., 300 km or 200 miles] until they arrived home."

So, it looks like the axe aside from being a weapon is the ethnic upland Filipinos' Swiss knife as well.

8th November 2008, 01:01 AM	#40
migueldiaz Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Manila, Phils. Posts: 1,042	Here's some more early-1900s impressions on the Cordillera battle axe. This time we go back to Albert Jenks' The Bontoc Igorot -- The mystery of the bad haircut finally explained "The hair of the head is black, straight, coarse, and relatively abundant ... [t]he front is 'banged' low and square across the forehead, cut with the battle-ax ..." Can be used to groom facial hair, too: "The scanty growth of hair on the face of the Bontoc man is pulled out. A small pebble and the thumb nail or the blade of the battle-ax and the bulb of the thumb are frequently used as forceps ..." The men used the battle axe in the kitchen as well: "Its [the chicken's] legs were severed from the body with the battle-ax and put in the pot. From its front it was then cut through its ribs with one gash." The axe is considered as one of the man's treasured possessions: "With the men are buried, besides the things interred with the married men, the basket-work hat, the basket-work sleeping hat, the spear, the battle-ax, and the earrings if any are possessed." The axe is even used for branding: "These eastern horses are not used by the Igorot except for food, and no property right is recognized in them, though the Igorot brands them with a battle-ax brand." Here's one unexpected and amusing use!: "The foreskin is cut lengthwise on the upper side for half an inch. Either a sharp, blade-like piece of bamboo is inserted in the foreskin which is cut from the inside, or the back point of a battle-ax is stuck firmly in the earth, and the foreskin is cut by being drawn over the sharp point of the blade." Even on crime and punishment it figures: "There is an egg test said to be the surest one of all. A battle-ax blade is held at an angle of about 60 degrees, and an egg is placed at the top in a position to slide down. Just before the egg is freed from the hand the question is asked 'Is Liod (the name of the man under trial) guilty?' If the egg slides down the blade to the bottom the man named is innocent but if it sticks on the ax he is guilty." A battle axe is sometimes a common property: "Through inheritance two or more people become joint owners of single carabao, and of small herds which they prefer to own in common, pending such an increase that the herd may be divided equally without slaughtering an animal. Until recent years two, three, and even four or five men jointly owned one battle-ax." Finally, a brief historical sketch: "The feeling of friendship between the Igorot and insurrectos [Filipino nationalists] was so strong that when the insurrectos asked the Igorot to go to Manila to fight the new enemy (the Americans), 400 warriors, armed only with spear, battle-ax, and shield, went a three weeks’ journey to get American heads. At Caloocan, just outside Manila, they met the American Army early in February, 1899. They threw their spears, the Americans fired their guns—“which must be brothers to the thunder,” the Igorot said—and they let fall their remaining weapons, and, panic stricken, started home. All but thirteen arrived in safety. They are not ashamed of their defeat and retreat; they made a mistake when they went to fight the Americans, and they were quick to see it. They are largely blessed with the saving sense of humor, and some of the warriors who were at Caloocan [now northern Metro Manila] have been known to say that they never stopped running [i.e., 300 km or 200 miles] until they arrived home." So, it looks like the axe aside from being a weapon is the ethnic upland Filipinos' Swiss knife as well. Attached Images Last edited by migueldiaz; 8th November 2008 at 11:12 PM.