GUNONG on EBAY

[Battara]

Great pictures. Also explains the ivory hilts on these new pieces.

No offense, but I do find it disturbing that they have acquired illegal ivory from recently killed elephants..........

[Gavin Nugent]

Originally Posted by Battara

No offense, but I do find it disturbing that they have acquired illegal ivory from recently killed elephants..........

Don't dispair so easily, the ivory could have come from trimming of tusks and other avenues.

[David]

Originally Posted by freebooter

Don't dispair so easily, the ivory could have come from trimming of tusks and other avenues.

Gav, at least one of the images in the gallery Ron linked shows an ivory tusk in the foreground, so not trimmings.
Pretty sure the gunong that i originally posted is indeed bone, not ivory, but photos are difficult to figure with that ID at times, especially after the material has been processed and stained to give an antique effect.

[Gavin Nugent]

Originally Posted by David

Gav, at least one of the images in the gallery Ron linked shows an ivory tusk in the foreground, so not trimmings.
Pretty sure the gunong that i originally posted is indeed bone, not ivory, but photos are difficult to figure with that ID at times, especially after the material has been processed and stained to give an antique effect.

We all know there are issues with ivory trade but alarm bells do not always need to be rung.

The small tusk in the photo shows to be cut clean. This is very rarely the case with poached ivory, where the entire tusk is removed from the dead Elephant.

Here is one such example of cut tusks;
http://www.asianelephantresearch.com...-Infection.php

Gav

[David]

Gentlemen...i see no reason why this thread should now move into discussion of the ivory trade. I don't believe the original gunong is ivory. the fittings seems to be made of bone. Let's discuss THIS weapon and try to keep this on topic and not digress into a debate about legal vs illegal ivory.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Salaams all~ I had to look up German Silver which appears to be made of ~ three fifths copper, one fifth nickel and one fifth zinc. Some versions of this alloy may have slightly different ratios of these metals, and some may be made with only copper and nickel, and no zinc. A silver test would deliver the answer.

The work looks new along the edges of the finished worked silver where I can see sharp edges. The incised patterns are uniformally cut and appear new and without wear indicating a freshly worked project. I have to say, however, that the work looks good but I am no expert on these weapons nor do I know the silver smiths of that region. (if indeed it is silver)

Where or if it can be proven that this workshop is producing authentic weapons and provided that there are no illusions by the owner I see no reason why an ongoing ethnographic production unit shouldn't do well...If the work is true then these could be the antiques of the future.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[David]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Where or if it can be proven that this workshop is producing authentic weapons and provided that there are no illusions by the owner I see no reason why an ongoing ethnographic production unit shouldn't do well...If the work is true then these could be the antiques of the future.

I am basically in agreement with you Ibrahiim. I doubt that the metal is silver simply because the seller (who sells a great deal of similar Moro weapons on eBay) made absolutely no mention of the nature of the material. A seasoned and astute seller such as this would undoubtably mention silver as a selling point if it were the case.
I would be quite pleased to see the continuance of high quality tradition weapons being produced in the area. My only concern is that they all appear to have been "aged" for appearance sake and then presented with no claim to age whatsoever. This kind of leaves the question open for the buyer and as we all probably know, people tend to believe what they want to believe if not told otherwise. And then, if a buyer who assumes the item has age turns around a couple of years later and sells it it might then become labelled as "early 20th Century" or some other nonsense like that. Of course, it is always "buyer beware", isn't it...

[Nathaniel]

Originally Posted by Battara

Great pictures. Also explains the ivory hilts on these new pieces.

No offense, but I do find it disturbing that they have acquired illegal ivory from recently killed elephants..........

Speaking of which that just reminded me that in this last October 2012 there was a good article written up in National Geographic called Blood Ivory, which detailed that current status of the illegal ivory trade. China, Thailand and the Philippines where highlighted as major consumers of ivory. Here is the article. If you get a chance take a look at the actual magazine as there are some more graphs and photos.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/20...y/christy-text

[Nathaniel]

And a similar article was published in March 2012 in the National Geographic called Rhino Wars

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/20...wars/gwin-text