[Philip]

In terms of overall form, the disc guard with oval lateral aperture as seen on Ariel's dha is something quite frequently encountered on some types of Vietnamese sabers. I think that the origin of the auxiliary apertures (there can be one or two) is definitely Japanese. As stated in Huard and Durand's CONNAISSANCE DU VIET-NAM (Hanoi: Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient, 1954) p 155, there was a considerable import of Japanese swords into SE Asia in the 16th cent. Originally, the aperture(s) were to allow removal of the by-knife and skewer that are usually contained on the sides of Japanese scabbards. These accessories were not used on Vietnamese scabbards so the continued presence of the openings on locally-made versions of tsubas is for stylistic reasons only.

I have an example of a Vietnamese saber (guom) whose circular brass guard has two lateral openings. Recently I obtained several excavated bronze Vietnamese disc guards, reputedly obtained in the area of Hoi An, which boasted a resident Japanese merchant colony in the 16th-17th cent. (a covered bridge, and several graves, are extant testimonies to this community). One of the guards has a single D-shaped side opening, in this case too small to be of any functional use. Otherwise, the guard is multi-lobed with depictions of lions, dogs, and unicorns in relief, having a more Chinese flavor to the shape and art work. I have two others, both silver-inlaid copper, in which the apertures have morphed into S- and lozenge-shaped openings. Here, these also appear to be an original Japanese concept which has become modified with the strong Chinese elements which are integral parts of Vietnam's decorative arts.