Strange Oriental sword

[Ian]

Ariel:

I had intended to post pictures of this one side-by-side with an example of the original sword from which it was derived.

The blade comes from a Dutch Colonial military saber issued in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) during the first half of the 20th C. I have one of these complete with scabbard and will try to post pictures over the weekend (time permitting). Edit: Actually, Rick has already posted links to pics of a Dutch "klewang" saber, and mine is identical to the pictures he linked to.

The handle appears to be a Japanese refit, perhaps WWII vintage, as suggested. I thought it was likely a souvenir collected in Indonesia by a Japanese military person during WWII.

Ian.

Originally Posted by ariel

What is it?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...e=STRK:MEWA:IT
It looks like a "fusion" sword, although well-made.
The blade is European, with a clipped point liked by the Russians; the edge is strange: looks like it was pre-formed when the blade was made rather than resulting from sharpening. The scrimshawed handle looks Chinese but nicely attached. The absense of even rudimentary crossguard makes it less than comfortable for real fighting; more like a decorative renovation.
Any ideas? Did I miss an opportunity to get an ultimate " collector's dream"?