Anyone here win this one[Talibong/Garab]?

[kino]

I noticed the damage to the hilt.
Didn't think it would command such a pretty penny. Good news indeed.

[ThePepperSkull]

Not great news for those of us just getting into Visayan blades


Nice piece though.

[KuKulzA28]

Amazing how in the last 5 years prices have begun rising a lot. Or maybe that's just my impression. I guess that's good news for those sitting on large collections, and bad news for those who wish they could. But that's how things usually go when prices rise.

Talibong are nice blades... I don't see them making them like that no more

[G. McCormack]

Wowza, thats five times more than I'd expect! Interesting looking flaw on the blade. I've had some blades form circular cracks like that during the quench, but only a few times. I can't tell what the dark spot is? Is that just an aspect of the lighting?

[Dimasalang]

I would say for a very long time most people(general public) just assumed a Philippine sword was either a Moro Barong, Kris, or Kampilan. With a few Luzon regular Bolos thrown in. I believe that is now changing with the sharing of knowledge and the internet; which helps others connect, research, and document(and is all made public). And with that comes easy access of information to these weapons that most never even knew about. These Visayan weapons are an entirely whole new world. It is about time these swords get recognized for their craftsmanship as well as historical value. Realistically, anyone can go out and find a quality Barong, Kris, or Kampilan very easily. And if money is no object, you can pick and choice. I believe people are now realizing certain Visayan pieces, like the Talibong/Garab, are more rare and exclusive then the Moros weapons(even if they aren't made of higher quality materials). And this quality Talibong that sold on eBay is one of the higher end weapons to come out of the Visayan area even with the damage. You almost can not pick and choose when it comes to the Visayan area of weapons; just wait for them to appear and fight everyone else off who now wants one. The increased demand is now significantly out weighting the limited supply for Visayan weapons. There is far less supply of Visayan weapons compared to Moro weapons...and the demand is not dropping but growing. Everyone is just now realizing that. Well... thats just my take on it.

[KuKulzA28]

I agree, and I personally feel the growing interest worldwide in Filipino Martial arts has something to do with it as well. Now you have people from around the world learning fighting styles from Luzon and Visaya and searching for the "native blades" of that style. Many start having more interest in blades considered exotic outside of PI such as the ginunting, the talibong, the pinute, the sansibar, etc. Also, as the fighting styles gain more exposure, weapon-aficionados begin learning more of the martial history of the Filipinos and the weaponry and well, you know what happens next. Of course, a lot of those people are also drawn to Moro weaponry but hey, with their charismatic history of resistance, even many Filipino martial artists like to claim their style being somehow descended from the Muslim Filipino styles..

While the price may reflect the increased demand and appreciation, ThePepperSkull makes a good point - it does make it harder for anyone to collect.

[kronckew]

Originally Posted by KuKulzA28

...
Talibong are nice blades... I don't see them making them like that no more

i don't know, they still make nice blades, this one is in L6 by Jun Silva, late 20th c., also chisel ground edge. he could have spent a bit more effort on the woodwork i guess, which is not as decorative as the ebay one, but not worth $700 more... there is a site that sells some of the more exotic traditional filipino weapons at a blanket price of around $250. i covet one of their sansibars...

[KuKulzA28]

Originally Posted by kronckew

i don't know, they still make nice blades, this one is in L6 by Jun Silva, late 20th c., also chisel ground edge. he could have spent a bit more effort on the woodwork i guess, which is not as decorative as the ebay one, but not worth $700 more... there is a site that sells some of the more exotic traditional filipino weapons at a blanket price of around $250. i covet one of their sansibars...

Ok, I hear ya, I think what I meant was the ornate carving... blade quality is definitely up there. Some of the stuff that the Filipino pandays are puttin' out these days is really quality steel.

I'm a big fan of Jun Silva... he makes good blades.

[Dimasalang]

Originally Posted by kronckew

i don't know, they still make nice blades, this one is in L6 by Jun Silva, late 20th c., also chisel ground edge. he could have spent a bit more effort on the woodwork i guess, which is not as decorative as the ebay one, but not worth $700 more... there is a site that sells some of the more exotic traditional filipino weapons at a blanket price of around $250. i covet one of their sansibars...

Where can I buy one?

[kronckew]

Originally Posted by Dimasalang

Where can I buy one?

all the ones i have seen for sale have come from visits to jun's family shop in visaya. they pop up on ebay & in other knife/sword fora on occasion. i bought mine via ebay from a man who had bought them from jun's shop. i managed to shark a talibon, 2 small garab knives, a pinute and a ginunting in separate auctions, oddly i was the only bidder for all of them, and so paid next to nothing for them. the rest of the members were asleep that week. it pays to keep your eyes open. ebay.uk sadly will no longer list knives or swords for collectors.