Another interesting Moro sword

VVV · 25th July 2006, 09:46 PM

The reason no traditional Dayak design is seen on the Kampilans is that it never was a Dayak sword. The Illanun people were Moros from Mindanao who settled quite late in North Borneo. Already in the early 20th C they were mixed with, and became part of, the Bajau tribe. Like the Illanuns the Bajaus are Muslim and have Malay, not Dayak, origin.
So Kampilans were used by the Moros who was living in Borneo.

According to Ivor Evans' field studies (published 1922) almost all of the Moro weapons (Barong, Kris) were imported except maybe some of the Kampilans.

"Most of the villages have a blacksmith, who is capable of turning out very fair knives, spear-heads and other small articles, but the making of waved or straight kris and sundang blades is now a lost art, if indeed such articles were ever made in either district, of which I have no proof: in fact I am rather inclined to think that the two commonest forms of sword to be found in the hands of the Bajaus and Illanuns, the barong or pida, and the sundang, which is locally called kris, were mostly imported from Sulu. The long Illanun sword, the kompilan, may have been made locally to a small extent."

Michael

Here is another resembling Kampilan, collected in Sulawesi.

25th July 2006, 09:46 PM	#9
VVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sweden Posts: 1,637	The reason no traditional Dayak design is seen on the Kampilans is that it never was a Dayak sword. The Illanun people were Moros from Mindanao who settled quite late in North Borneo. Already in the early 20th C they were mixed with, and became part of, the Bajau tribe. Like the Illanuns the Bajaus are Muslim and have Malay, not Dayak, origin. So Kampilans were used by the Moros who was living in Borneo. According to Ivor Evans' field studies (published 1922) almost all of the Moro weapons (Barong, Kris) were imported except maybe some of the Kampilans. "Most of the villages have a blacksmith, who is capable of turning out very fair knives, spear-heads and other small articles, but the making of waved or straight kris and sundang blades is now a lost art, if indeed such articles were ever made in either district, of which I have no proof: in fact I am rather inclined to think that the two commonest forms of sword to be found in the hands of the Bajaus and Illanuns, the barong or pida, and the sundang, which is locally called kris, were mostly imported from Sulu. The long Illanun sword, the kompilan, may have been made locally to a small extent." Michael Here is another resembling Kampilan, collected in Sulawesi. Attached Images