A "new" Luzon bolo enter the collection

[xasterix]

Originally Posted by Battara

Here is my piece. Thought it was Pampangan. Is it Pangansinan? Sun on the butt of the hilt - Katipunan group?

Brought back from a US service man who was in the PI back at the beginning of the 20th century.

I believe this is Kapampangan, "tulipas." The blunt blades of the Northern/Central Luzon area (Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Tarlac, Pampanga, Bulacan) can be very confusing...I spent the whole pandemic figuring them out before realizing the subtle differences among the blunt bolos. Notice how, when put side by side, the Pangasinan blunt bolo (which I believe to be the angled-tip talunasan variant), edge profile curves up. But in tulipas, the edge profile goes down and stays down.

The spine profiles are also different. There's a curve in the Pangasinan talunasan's, following the edge profile's curve-up towards the tip. The tulipas just slopes down without curving back up.

The reason for these subtle differences is because they were 'cut' from different blades. Tulipas was from a Kapampangan narrow-tipped blade (whose name eludes me), while talunasan is from the Pangasinan "barang" blade.

Hope this clarifies things!