Swords from the Pacific brought back after WW2. ID help requested.

[kai]

Hello Brad,

Welcome to the forum!

I have two swords that were brought back from the Pacific by my uncle after WW2. He told me that they were taken from the Philippines and I wondering if I could get some help in identifying the type of sword and possibly the origin and estimated time that they date to.

One of them, I believe, is a type of Bolo and the other is a Keris or Kris sword but I am not sure.

Yes, that is a Moro kris. A kalis taluseko from the Sulu archipelago with horsehoof-shaped hilt made of horn (any tiny holes visible on the polygonal pommel?); the asang-asang appear to be aluminium and probably are later and rather crude replacements. I'm sure it would be worth to have some new ones made from silver before renewing the grip braiding. IMHO, this kris dates from the first half of the 20th century, most likely 1920-1930.

Seems like you can easily disassemble the kris and try a careful cleaning of the blade (removing rust is a must and I'd suggest to gently repolish the blade and stain/etch it for bringing out the lamination). BTW, what are the dimensions for both pieces?


The other piece is really neat - I like it! Haven't seen one with similarly oversized guard before. This seems to be Visayan (chisel-like edge profile) - maybe our specialists can narrow things down? The scabbard looks odd and could well be from around/before WW2 while the sundang itself might well be older...

Regards,
Kai