Barung; weapon, tool or tourist piece?

[Dimasalang]

Originally Posted by VVV

I have seen captured swords, barongs and kris, from a friend in the Force Recon of the Filipino Marines.
All of them seems to be late 20th C.
It´s interesting that the one on the picture is a shorter version.
The ginunting of the Filipino Marines is also shorter than the one that the instructors of Pekiti-Tirsia Kali got in the 90´s.
I was told that the reason why is for it to be easier to carry and that it´s only used for closed quarters.
I still prefer the old one that was individually measured for each instructor.

Michael

I believe Lorenz brought this up before.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showpo...7&postcount=28

I also bought a modern day ginunting from Buddy, the smith who makes them for the Filipino Marines.

[migueldiaz]

Some more recent blades, as used by the soldiers of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front, from this video ...

[David]

I am sure that many if not all of these blade (i say blades but we don't really see them in these pictures and videos, just the dress) are fully functional and have utilitarian purpose. Most are probably recent blades, but some could be remounted old blades for all we know. After all, we don't really see them. But i think the bottom line really is that the barong and the kris are both deeply symbolic weapons to the Moros and carrying these smaller examples is no doubt meant to express this symbolic relationship. Obviously with automatic weapons and rocket launches on their shoulders these blades are no longer meant to be their main weapons as they once were. At smaller size they maintain the tradition and history of the Moro warrior and are probably pretty effective as brush cutters and utility knives.

[migueldiaz]

David, I agree with everything you said.

And occasionally, government and Moro rebel troops sometimes surprise each other in the middle of the jungle, such that instead of a firefight the encounter becomes a disorganized melee.

In those instances, blades would come in handy.

Recently, a friend (who knows the legendary Col. Ariel Querubin of the Phil. Marines) told me about such typical melee that happened in Mindanao, involving the troops of the said colonel.

The govt. troops were resting in the middle of the jungle while on patrol. Then they and some other guys (resting, too, on a nearby spot) realized very quickly that they were enemies, and so a melee ensued, with no firearms involved!

I'm sure aside from bare fists, rocks, and tree branches, blades were used, too.

[KuKulzA28]

That story is almost amusing... this is...
until you consider the kind of wounds they may receive...
the cut of the ginunting or the slash of the barong...

I have question: do the local smiths in "Moroland" make Moro blades for their own people exclusively? Are they still of the same caliber as they once were? Better? Worse?

[kai]

Hello Vinny,

do the local smiths in "Moroland" make Moro blades for their own people exclusively?

There may be some who wouldn't want to sell a blade to outsiders. However, with the economical realities in the southern Philippines, most artisans seem to be more than happy to get a broader customer base. Anyway, you'll be unlikely to get into contact with a panday but rather a local dealer.

Are they still of the same caliber as they once were? Better? Worse?

There are clear indications that traditional Moro bladesmithing has gone through a severe bottleneck during the 20th century and some may even argue that it has gone extinct (obviously, much of the knowledge got lost).

However, the current panday in Mindanao are getting better (e. g. a separate gangya has been the rule for decent new examples for quite some years) and it is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish antique kris from some newly produced and artificially patinated ones. Aesthetically, the craftmanship still can't compare with good traditional examples from the early 20th century and I also can't vouch for their balance; I have yet to see a traditionally laminated new piece. However, I'm sure that these blades would do their job and wouldn't want to be of the receiving end of any of the newly produced pieces, too. At least these modern era Moro kris are IMHO much, much closer to the real deal than those repros coming out of Luzon...

Regards,
Kai

[migueldiaz]

Originally Posted by kai

... I have yet to see a traditionally laminated new piece.

I'm not sure also whether in the recent past (10 to 20 years ago), laminated blades are still being made by Moro bladesmiths.

It appears though that earlier (30 or so years ago), the blades are still laminated. The pic below is from a 1970s Filipino book, on an article on Filipino bladesmithing.