Gustav, as far as wootz goes, I question marked it.
There are a number of types of iron, and looking at the photos of this blade, what I believe I can see is a type of iron that varies from the norm. I might think differently if it was in my hand, but I only have photos to look at, not the actual blade.
This material is not the usual.
Bloomery iron? Maybe. But maybe something else. I don't know.
You assert it is not wootz. You're probably right.
But it is certainly not the usual type of material I'm used to seeing. At this point I'm not prepared to offer an opinion on what it is, I was hoping somebody might have been able offer a valid opinion.
Maybe all I'm seeing is the result of some sort of unique corrosion or cleaning, I don't know.
That is the reason for the question mark.
Can wootz be welded with wrought iron?
I've never had any wootz that I could try that with, but yes, I believe with careful fire control it could be. Put it this way, a lot of wootz blades are welded to an ordinary iron base & tang.
Could this blade be supported as Sedayu classification?
In my opinion no, and for the same reason that it cannot be supported as Banten, or Blambangan, or Surakarta:- the condition is too poor and it is out of stain. Yes, there are some characteristics that might be able to be interpreted as Sedayu, or as half a dozen other classifications, but for a blade in this condition we can only look at the remnant indicators and perhaps lean more towards one classification than another.
But that said, I still tend towards Banten, mind you:- I am not arguing for Banten, I am only saying that if this were in much better condition I believe I could argue for Banten, thus, I tend towards Banten. Not only because of the remaining physical features, but because historically Banten was much more prolific than the other possibilities, and it was also centered around an international trading port.
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