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Old 2nd July 2014, 11:11 AM   #1
Ian
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Default Luzon matulis

Sajen:

This is my first post in several years--illness and work have kept me sidelined and away from this board, but I hope to be back here more frequently.

Nice knife. I think a more precise term for this knife might be Luzon matulis (matulis = "pointed") rather than the more general term of itak which simply means bolo or knife. I'm not a Tagalog native speaker, but that's what I've gleaned over the years from people who are.

As to the age of this knife, that's hard to say. Certainly it was a style of knife used by the katipuneros during the uprising against Spain in the late 19th C, and is still being made today. Where it was made on Luzon is even harder to say--could be within the area from Ilocos norte down to Batangas.

As for the vertical marks at the forte, I'm afraid they are not helpful in determining age.

Ian.
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Old 2nd July 2014, 03:31 PM   #2
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WELCOME BACK IAN!

Glad you are back with us. Been too long.

I'm curious, what indicates this may be Ilokano?
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Old 3rd July 2014, 02:12 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by Battara
WELCOME BACK IAN!

Glad you are back with us. Been too long.

I'm curious, what indicates this may be Ilokano?
Thanks Jose. It's good to be back and to have the time to think of swords again.

Ilocano knives and swords are not particularly distinctive, but I have a few well provenanced ones that show the rather graceful contours to the full tang hilt that is exhibited by the original subject of this thread as wella s the small "notch" to the cutting edge just at the ricasso. Not saying these are definitive signs of Ilocano work, but they are consistent with the identified pieces I have had in the past.

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Old 4th July 2014, 12:08 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian
Ilocano knives and swords are not particularly distinctive, but I have a few well provenanced ones that show the rather graceful contours to the full tang hilt that is exhibited by the original subject of this thread as wella s the small "notch" to the cutting edge just at the ricasso. Not saying these are definitive signs of Ilocano work, but they are consistent with the identified pieces I have had in the past.

Ian.
Thanks Ian. I will only add that some Ilokano pieces have wavy blades and the tang goes all the way through the hilt.

On the matter of the notch near the hilt, I have a couple of Tagalog bolos that also have this notch.
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Old 4th July 2014, 03:59 PM   #5
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Hey, Ian - great to have you back!

That's been way too many years, indeed...

Regards,
Kai
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Old 6th July 2014, 01:15 PM   #6
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not to hijack your post Sajen, but it's so refreshing to see Ian back!!! welcome back, my friend!!! nice to see your posts here again
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Old 6th July 2014, 01:21 PM   #7
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not to hijack your post Sajen, but it's so refreshing to see Ian back!!! welcome back, my friend!!! nice to see your posts here again
No problem!
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Old 6th July 2014, 02:49 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by Spunjer
not to hijack your post Sajen, but it's so refreshing to see Ian back!!! welcome back, my friend!!! nice to see your posts here again
Thanks Spunjer. It's good to renew acquaintances again with all my old buddies. Sorry to turn this post into a hpmecoming event Detlef.

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Old 6th July 2014, 02:46 PM   #9
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Hey, Ian - great to have you back!

That's been way too many years, indeed...

Regards,
Kai
Thank you Kai. It has been quite a while.

Ian.
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Old 2nd July 2014, 07:56 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian
Sajen:

This is my first post in several years--illness and work have kept me sidelined and away from this board, but I hope to be back here more frequently.

Nice knife. I think a more precise term for this knife might be Luzon matulis (matulis = "pointed") rather than the more general term of itak which simply means bolo or knife. I'm not a Tagalog native speaker, but that's what I've gleaned over the years from people who are.

As to the age of this knife, that's hard to say. Certainly it was a style of knife used by the katipuneros during the uprising against Spain in the late 19th C, and is still being made today. Where it was made on Luzon is even harder to say--could be within the area from Ilocos norte down to Batangas.

As for the vertical marks at the forte, I'm afraid they are not helpful in determining age.

Ian.

Welcome back on board Ian! Hope that your health is good again.

Thank you for your thoughts about this blade; I would call it sword instead of knife, the length is 24 inch, the blade is nearly 1/2 inch thick near the handle.
When I understand you correct it would be called matulis when it is a Tagalog blade. But wouldn't it be called different when it is a Ilocano or a Batangas sword?

Regards,
Detlef
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Old 3rd July 2014, 02:07 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by Sajen
Welcome back on board Ian! Hope that your health is good again.

Thank you for your thoughts about this blade; I would call it sword instead of knife, the length is 24 inch, the blade is nearly 1/2 inch thick near the handle.
When I understand you correct it would be called matulis when it is a Tagalog blade. But wouldn't it be called different when it is a Ilocano or a Batangas sword?

Regards,
Detlef
Hi Detleff:

Batangas is a predominantly Tagalog province, so Tagalog is the dominant local dialect. Ilocano is a different language and I do not know the equivalent term there.

Ian.
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Old 3rd July 2014, 06:56 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian
Hi Detleff:

Batangas is a predominantly Tagalog province, so Tagalog is the dominant local dialect. Ilocano is a different language and I do not know the equivalent term there.

Ian.

Thank you Ian!
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Old 2nd July 2014, 08:38 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by Ian
This is my first post in several years--
Great to see you are back Ian!
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Old 2nd July 2014, 09:11 PM   #14
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Yes, Welcome back Ian. It is great to see you posting again.

Best,
Robert
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Old 3rd July 2014, 02:15 AM   #15
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Originally Posted by David
Great to see you are back Ian!
Thank you David. It's good to be thinking about edged weapons again.

Ian.
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Old 3rd July 2014, 02:15 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by David
Great to see you are back Ian!
Thank you David. It's good to be thinking about edged weapons again.

Ian.
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