well its been a while since this topics been discussed but i havesome further information.
i contact john Clunnies-Ross today and asked him about the knives and their history, he said the blacksmith shop on the home island (which although unused still exsists) manufactured these blades, although there could have been others too in the past. he said they were still made till the late 1970s along with others tools, spears ect . he said there was two main styles the "ladies" knife and the larger parangs. blades with made of eithervehical springs or indeed the german battleship.
he said making declinedwith the halt ofcopra processing.. no more charcoal being made and no more plantation workers,
he saidif we wanted more info about the knives there is a cocos islandfacebook page and that we could post the pictures there and that the relatives of the makers could see them and beable to givepossiably more information.
id really like to see somebody make such a knife again now. such ashame this craft vanished so quickly.
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