Moro Budiak, battlefield damage?

[drac2k]

Very nice piece ;having seen many items such as swords, guns, etc. with bullet holes and bullets lodged in strange and amazing locations, I have no doubt, that this was done in the heat of battle.

[CharlesS]

I would not want to be the hand holding that lovely budiak, if, indeed, a bullet struck it in battle.

I really like the brass mounts on this one.

[David]

Originally Posted by drac2k

Very nice piece ;having seen many items such as swords, guns, etc. with bullet holes and bullets lodged in strange and amazing locations, I have no doubt, that this was done in the heat of battle.

Drac, could you explain how you could possible tell the difference between bullet damage done in the heat of battle and damage done purposefully, say in target practice? How would one look different from the other?

[drac2k]

It would be impossible to definitively state that this was done in the heat of battle and of course no one could possibly tell how and why the spear was shot, however the probability that this was done in combat,I feel far outweighs the "target practice theory."
I based my theory on similar war damaged items that I have seen from the civil war to WW2 Japanese swords.The spear that was brought back was barrack bag cut, so obviously, the soldier who brought it back felt it was of some importance to him;I think, more so than showing that he was a good shot.Finally, in a land full of coconuts, who is going to shot a spear for target practice.
In conclusion, let me state that this is only a theory and it could have been done in target practice.................I just don't think so.

[Battara]

drac2k, I completely agree with you for the reasons you sited.

I thought about bidding on this one, but then I remembered I don't have any money right now....

That being said, I like the brass on this one too. Kino, if only you could find out what battle it got shot......

Thanks for posting this and congratulations!

[kino]

I can't tell if it's laminated or not. The hot water test revealed nothing.

The brass mounts and bands really adds to the spear.


It could have been set up for target practice, judging where it was struck almost at the middle and at near the widest section of the blade but adding to drac2k's theory, during target practice it's tempting to keep shooting until the target is destroyed whether the target be paper, metal man, fruit or household appliances.

[David]

Drac, the only reason i questioned you was because you stated that you had "no doubt". Obviously that was a bit of an exaggeration. Glad we could clear that up.

[drac2k]

Not a problem, as I myself tend to question everything; it drives my wife crazy!When one looks at how the fearless Moro warriors fought almost to the last man, such as in the first battle of Bud Dajo, where hundreds were killed in hand to hand combat, I still have "no doubt," as to how this spear was damaged!

[Sajen]

Agree with the others, very nice mounts! And a great piece of history and a good decision to keep it in this state.

Regards,
Detlef

[David]

Originally Posted by drac2k

... I still have "no doubt," as to how this spear was damaged!

Just for myself, i think it is my responsibility as a custodian of such pieces of history to always have doubt of such stories when no provenance is available to make such claims, especially in cases where the reason for the damage has the ability to affect the perceived value of the weapon in the collector's market. We love to attach all kinds of stories of the gory glory days of war to these Moro pieces and seem to attach more value to weapons we are sure drew the most amount of blood. Frankly i don't think it is anymore likely that this spear was damaged in battle than in target practice. It is indeed a question we can never answer with any assurance. The one thing i do have no doubt about is that the battle story will bring a higher price for this spear than the target practice story.