Kampilan with Bells

[Ian]

Originally Posted by CharlesS

A juramentado was not shy about his intents and purpose. Silence was not necessary. Could these be associated with them?

Hi Charles,

As noted by Jose, the juramentado used stealth and deception to get as close to a crowd of victims as he could before running amok. The preferred weapon was a smallish barung that could be secreted in his clothing until it was time to use it. The arms and legs of the juramentado would often be wrapped tightly in cloth, and sometimes the torso as well. This was aimed at reducing blood loss from wounds so that the warrior could continue to fight as long as possible (and thereby inflict as much damage as possible). These wrappings were concealed by outer clothing so as not to give away the intent of the warrior. There were also special cleansing and spiritual rituals that prepared the juramentado for what was often a suicide mission because the warrior seldom survived attacking a much larger number of armed opponents.

Ian

[Battara]

Oh! I almost forgot - here are a couple of before pictures:

(BTW - notice the thin recent copper wires connecting the bells. They would have easily broken off!)

[Jim McDougall]

Guys, thank you all so much for the answers on these bells, and Jose on that wavy loop!
Ian, I had forgotten that sword connected to Pershing that Gav had, that was a fantastic piece, and the research he did on it was remarkable. It is great when an item can be connected directly to a historic figure. It seems the volume of Chinese trade in the Philippines may have been the source for such 'tiger bells' as noted by Jose.

Pretty scary stuff on those 'juramentado'. I also think though that the bells as noted were to ward off spirits, and not as features aligned with battle or combative use.