Unknown sword, help needed!

[kai]

Hello Detlef,

Thanks for bringing up this oddity!

The middle section looks like rattan to me. I'm also looking forward to hearing what this extended "ferrule" is made of...

The auction house think that it coming from Africa but the blade shape look very Indonesian to my eyes. The patination look very old and suggest that the sword has some age. Could it be a simple stick sword from Flores?

I agree that this seems to be the type of blade which was widely traded throughout the eastern archipelago. I'm not sure we can narrow its origin down to Flores since the base and the pommel seem to be quite unusual.

BTW, Karel Sirag also mentions SE Sulawesi as a possible origin for the stick swords with longer blades. However, this example doesn't seem to vibe well with any of the cultures from there?

Regards,
Kai