Singhalese kastane.. Or... is it?

Jim McDougall · 8th June 2006, 02:51 AM

You guys are good!!!!!

I dug out my trusty kastane, and that guard is most definitely kastane.... not griffins, but makara. The difference is of course the descending makaras and langets below the crossguard are not present as on the normal kastane guard.
While the overall appearance certainly resembles the European/German hunting swords I was looking at, the blade as noted could not possibly be German or European.
The grip does seem to resemble something European however, and again, as noted, possibly from either a hanger or even part of the trousse.

I agree that this seems an assembled piece in reviewing the observations you have all made.......now the question is, could this be a piece assembled in 18th-19th c. possibly from regions in the trade sphere of Dutch EIC or other powers in Indonesia or SE Asia?

It seems that it's getting harder to find homogenous items any more, or items that the elements have been together since it's working life. Clearly, with weapons that were moderately used, damage and wear would take it's toll and it is rare to find many weapon forms that have not been refurbished any number of times during working life.

Best regards,
Jim

8th June 2006, 02:51 AM	#12
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,194	You guys are good!!!!! I dug out my trusty kastane, and that guard is most definitely kastane.... not griffins, but makara. The difference is of course the descending makaras and langets below the crossguard are not present as on the normal kastane guard. While the overall appearance certainly resembles the European/German hunting swords I was looking at, the blade as noted could not possibly be German or European. The grip does seem to resemble something European however, and again, as noted, possibly from either a hanger or even part of the trousse. I agree that this seems an assembled piece in reviewing the observations you have all made.......now the question is, could this be a piece assembled in 18th-19th c. possibly from regions in the trade sphere of Dutch EIC or other powers in Indonesia or SE Asia? It seems that it's getting harder to find homogenous items any more, or items that the elements have been together since it's working life. Clearly, with weapons that were moderately used, damage and wear would take it's toll and it is rare to find many weapon forms that have not been refurbished any number of times during working life. Best regards, Jim