Three new from Luzon

Sajen · 26th July 2016, 06:38 PM

Hello Leif,

all three pieces have been on my watch list and have thought about to go for them, most interesting has been the Apalit bolo, a very nice knife. Nice also that Apalit is seen on blade and scabbard. I think that it is older as you think, would place it between 1900-1930.

The dagger is a beauty but I was afraid by the bug damage on the one side of the handle, the seller picture of this side was dark and not sharp, sadly you as well don't want to show it really!

I would agree that it is from Batangas but think that it is pre WWII, the later examples have sometimes aluminium inlays instead of brass. Would really like to see the bad side of the handle to know if I should be very jealous or only a little bit!

The other bolo with chipped point could be Batangas but I am unsure, age around turn of the centuries, nice piece as well but the broken tip of the blade let me dither. When it was suddenly sold I was a little bit sad but think it come to good hands. I would think about to let reshape the tip when it would be mine.

Regards,
Detlef

Rafngard · 27th July 2016, 05:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sajen

all three pieces have been on my watch list and have thought about to go for them

I'm getting the impression we have similar collecting tastes. Great minds...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sajen

The dagger is a beauty but I was afraid by the bug damage on the one side of the handle, the seller picture of this side was dark and not sharp, sadly you as well don't want to show it really!

[...] Would really like to see the bad side of the handle to know if I should be very jealous or only a little bit!

Strangely, of all the pictures I took that day, this is the only one that came out blurry! Maybe it's cursed.
I'll try to take a more clear picture of that when next it's convenient. In regards to the damage, I think it's not terrible (I'd still buy the item), but it's definitely not good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sajen

The other bolo with chipped point could be Batangas but I am unsure, age around turn of the centuries, nice piece as well but the broken tip of the blade let me dither. When it was suddenly sold I was a little bit sad but think it come to good hands. I would think about to let reshape the tip when it would be mine.

I'd been watching it a while. I think what happened was that I'd just lost another item, and was frustrated, and decided "screw it!" and just bought it. I've done that more than once, and have yet to regret it.

I've thought about trying to get the tip reshaped, but really, the fact that someone sharpened the edge where the top broke off kind of amuses me so much that I'll probably leave it. It's the tiniest cutting edge ever.

Have fun,
Leif

Sajen · 27th July 2016, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rafngard

I'm getting the impression we have similar collecting tastes. Great minds...

Yes, it seems that we have choosen the same part of the world to collect sharp ethnograhic things from.

Rafngard · 28th July 2016, 05:00 AM

Here's the unpleasant side

Sajen · 28th July 2016, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rafngard

Here's the unpleasant side

The horse seems to be shamed about it's scars and know a magic to make any picture unsharp.

Rafngard · 28th July 2016, 08:06 PM

I actually think that if I could replace the eye it wouldn't be too bad.

Ian · 29th July 2016, 02:00 AM

Leif:

Those are three nice knives you have shown with well tooled leather sheaths.

I think the longest one with the broken tip is the oldest. This could well be revolutionary war period and may have seen some action in fighting with the Spanish and later U.S. occupiers. I don't see anything particularly Batangas to it, and the hilt is reminiscent of those seen from the Laguna de Pays area of Metro Manila (west central Luzon).

The Apalit bolo is also fairly old, as Detlef has noted--perhaps early 20th C. Apalit is a town in the Province of Pampanga which is close to the former Clark Air Force Base that the U.S. continued to use until Mt. Pinatubo erupted and covered it in ash. We have discussed bolos from Apalit before and you can find those discussions by using the Search Function and entering Apalit. It is interesting that your bolo is marked APALIT over MA. I have a very similarly marked bolo but it has APALIT over EB (http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18769). These could be maker's initials.

The small dagger is also interesting. It is the youngest of the three IMO, and probably dates from the 1950s or a little later. The horses head is a popular Filipino motif, but not commonly seen on knives from Central Luzon. The triangular shaped blade, with bevel on one side, might suggest a possible Visayan origin (Cebu?). However, I am more inclined to ascribe this knife to an Ilocano craftsman. The Ilocano produce knives with similar blades to this one, and they occasionally use a horse's head on the hilt. The style of the brass cross guard and ferrule is also consistent with Ilocano work.

Thanks again for showing these interesting examples.

Ian.

28th July 2016, 05:00 AM	#4
Rafngard Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Minneapolis,MN Posts: 348	Scar face Here's the unpleasant side Attached Images

26th July 2016, 06:38 PM	#1
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,165	Hello Leif, all three pieces have been on my watch list and have thought about to go for them, most interesting has been the Apalit bolo, a very nice knife. Nice also that Apalit is seen on blade and scabbard. I think that it is older as you think, would place it between 1900-1930. The dagger is a beauty but I was afraid by the bug damage on the one side of the handle, the seller picture of this side was dark and not sharp, sadly you as well don't want to show it really! I would agree that it is from Batangas but think that it is pre WWII, the later examples have sometimes aluminium inlays instead of brass. Would really like to see the bad side of the handle to know if I should be very jealous or only a little bit! The other bolo with chipped point could be Batangas but I am unsure, age around turn of the centuries, nice piece as well but the broken tip of the blade let me dither. When it was suddenly sold I was a little bit sad but think it come to good hands. I would think about to let reshape the tip when it would be mine. Regards, Detlef

28th July 2016, 08:06 PM	#6
Rafngard Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Minneapolis,MN Posts: 348	I actually think that if I could replace the eye it wouldn't be too bad.

29th July 2016, 02:00 AM	#7
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,361	Leif: Those are three nice knives you have shown with well tooled leather sheaths. I think the longest one with the broken tip is the oldest. This could well be revolutionary war period and may have seen some action in fighting with the Spanish and later U.S. occupiers. I don't see anything particularly Batangas to it, and the hilt is reminiscent of those seen from the Laguna de Pays area of Metro Manila (west central Luzon). The Apalit bolo is also fairly old, as Detlef has noted--perhaps early 20th C. Apalit is a town in the Province of Pampanga which is close to the former Clark Air Force Base that the U.S. continued to use until Mt. Pinatubo erupted and covered it in ash. We have discussed bolos from Apalit before and you can find those discussions by using the Search Function and entering Apalit. It is interesting that your bolo is marked APALIT over MA. I have a very similarly marked bolo but it has APALIT over EB (http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18769). These could be maker's initials. The small dagger is also interesting. It is the youngest of the three IMO, and probably dates from the 1950s or a little later. The horses head is a popular Filipino motif, but not commonly seen on knives from Central Luzon. The triangular shaped blade, with bevel on one side, might suggest a possible Visayan origin (Cebu?). However, I am more inclined to ascribe this knife to an Ilocano craftsman. The Ilocano produce knives with similar blades to this one, and they occasionally use a horse's head on the hilt. The style of the brass cross guard and ferrule is also consistent with Ilocano work. Thanks again for showing these interesting examples. Ian.