Very Unusual Philippine Sword.

Robert · 16th September 2016, 12:28 AM

Here is a very unusual Philippine sword from my collection with a decorative scabbard that was made from a discarded sugar tin. I believe this piece to be from central Luzon and would date to the late 19th or early 20th century. Because of the material used in the making of the scabbard this could very possibly be from the Subic Bay area where a sugar tin such as the one used would have been readily available from the trash of the American Naval Forces stationed there.
Originally I was not going to post photos of this piece until it was finished,
but decided instead to show it in the different stages of restoration.
At some point in its history the last (approximately) four inches of blade and
scabbard were bent sideways almost to the point of snapping the blade into. When I received it the blade and scabbard had been straighten out far enough for the blade to once again slide in and out freely, but the blade itself was broken about three quarters of the way through from the cutting edge to the spine. It has since been welded back together. I will post more photos of this item as the work progresses with close-ups of the blade repair. Any comments or information that anyone would like to add would be greatly appreciated. I apologise for the poor quality of most of these photos.

Best,
Robert

VANDOO · 16th September 2016, 04:36 AM

A VERY UNIQUE SWORD I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW THE WORK PROGRESSES. IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE IF ANYONE ELSE HAS SEEN A SIMILAR METAL SCABBARD FROM THE PHILIPPINES. PERHAPS YOU CAN GIVE THE BLADE AN ETCH TO SEE IF IT IS WATERED STEEL. YOUR BLADE REMINDS ME OF THE BLADES ON SOME OF THE SWORDS FROM FORMOSA MINUS THE POINT. I THINK THE CLIPPED POINT STARTED DURING SPAIN'S OCCUPATION AND CARRIED ON INTO THE USA PRESENCE. .

Robert · 16th September 2016, 05:00 AM

Hello Barry, here is another bolo (that still needs a good cleaning) that I believe to be from the same time frame and possible location. "If" I remember correctly this was described by the seller as being brought back from the Spanish American War. I have seen a couple of knives with metal sheaths (I won one of these) as well as two other swords with metal scabbards, but I was not lucky enough to win either of them.

Quote:

I THINK THE CLIPPED POINT STARTED DURING SPAIN'S OCCUPATION AND CARRIED ON INTO THE USA PRESENCE.

This is what I have been told as well. With or without a point this is one vicious example of bolo that I do not believe was ever meant for farm work.

Best,
Robert

Ian · 16th September 2016, 08:20 AM

Robert,

Your second example is a Central Luzon matulis from the revolutionary period in the fight with Spain at the end of the 19th C. The word matulis in Tagalog means coming to a point, or sharply pointed, which is an accurate description for large knives/short swords of this shape. Purely a slashing and stabbing weapon. While it could be used as a tool, it is not optimally designed for such work and is therefore mainly a weapon.

Sharply pointed blades such as these were prohibited by the Spanish in the late 19th C. because they were such deadly weapons, hence the amputation of the tips on many pointed blades at that time to conform to the Spanish decree. To own a matulis at that time was to brand you as a revolutionary and a renegade.

As far as tin scabbards, I believe these likely come from later, in the 20th C., when U.S. forces were well established in Luzon. Your first example may well be a knife from an earlier period later dressed up in a fancy tin scabbard.

Ian

Robert · 16th September 2016, 09:58 PM

Hello Ian,
Thank you for your very informative response on these two items. Your suggestion that the first sword could possibly be older than the scabbard itself was an idea that Lorenz and I were discussing right after I first acquired this piece with the possibility that the sword likely dating to somewhere between 1850 and 1890 and (as you point out) the scabbard being a later replacement. The very unusual styling of blade is one that I have never seen on any other Philippine sword before and was wondering if you have ever seen anything like it before either?

Best,
Robert

Kmaddock · 17th September 2016, 06:46 AM

Hi Robert
Looking forward to hearing how the welding was done.

I have used oxo acetylene with fair success in the past but I do not have access to tig or mig so maybe these are ether for blade repair. I also do stick welding but this would be too harsh for blade work.

When repairing breaks, I found it no real problem when working at the spine of the blade but where the blade becomes very thin Towards the cutting edge I found it quiet difficult not to burn through the blade.

Did you find differential cooling a problem, I did in so far as I had to heat the blade either side of the weld to help ease the contraction of the metal from forming cracks.

Best regards
Ken

Ian · 17th September 2016, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robert

... The very unusual styling of blade is one that I have never seen on any other Philippine sword before and was wondering if you have ever seen anything like it before either? ...

Hi Robert.

Yes, I have seen Luzon knives of this shape before, but not frequently. The curved blade with a prominent "belly" reminds me of the general shape of some of the older Visayan garab. Two examples of this form are shown below from the History of Steel exhibition. The prominent angle of the garab hilt is not present in the few Luzon knives I have seen with this general blade shape.

Ian

16th September 2016, 12:28 AM	#1
Robert EAAF Staff Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Centerville, Kansas Posts: 2,196	Very Unusual Philippine Sword. Here is a very unusual Philippine sword from my collection with a decorative scabbard that was made from a discarded sugar tin. I believe this piece to be from central Luzon and would date to the late 19th or early 20th century. Because of the material used in the making of the scabbard this could very possibly be from the Subic Bay area where a sugar tin such as the one used would have been readily available from the trash of the American Naval Forces stationed there. Originally I was not going to post photos of this piece until it was finished, but decided instead to show it in the different stages of restoration. At some point in its history the last (approximately) four inches of blade and scabbard were bent sideways almost to the point of snapping the blade into. When I received it the blade and scabbard had been straighten out far enough for the blade to once again slide in and out freely, but the blade itself was broken about three quarters of the way through from the cutting edge to the spine. It has since been welded back together. I will post more photos of this item as the work progresses with close-ups of the blade repair. Any comments or information that anyone would like to add would be greatly appreciated. I apologise for the poor quality of most of these photos. Best, Robert Attached Images

16th September 2016, 04:36 AM	#2
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	A VERY UNIQUE SWORD I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW THE WORK PROGRESSES. IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE IF ANYONE ELSE HAS SEEN A SIMILAR METAL SCABBARD FROM THE PHILIPPINES. PERHAPS YOU CAN GIVE THE BLADE AN ETCH TO SEE IF IT IS WATERED STEEL. YOUR BLADE REMINDS ME OF THE BLADES ON SOME OF THE SWORDS FROM FORMOSA MINUS THE POINT. I THINK THE CLIPPED POINT STARTED DURING SPAIN'S OCCUPATION AND CARRIED ON INTO THE USA PRESENCE. .

16th September 2016, 08:20 AM	#4
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,034	Robert, Your second example is a Central Luzon matulis from the revolutionary period in the fight with Spain at the end of the 19th C. The word matulis in Tagalog means coming to a point, or sharply pointed, which is an accurate description for large knives/short swords of this shape. Purely a slashing and stabbing weapon. While it could be used as a tool, it is not optimally designed for such work and is therefore mainly a weapon. Sharply pointed blades such as these were prohibited by the Spanish in the late 19th C. because they were such deadly weapons, hence the amputation of the tips on many pointed blades at that time to conform to the Spanish decree. To own a matulis at that time was to brand you as a revolutionary and a renegade. As far as tin scabbards, I believe these likely come from later, in the 20th C., when U.S. forces were well established in Luzon. Your first example may well be a knife from an earlier period later dressed up in a fancy tin scabbard. Ian

16th September 2016, 09:58 PM	#5
Robert EAAF Staff Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Centerville, Kansas Posts: 2,196	Hello Ian, Thank you for your very informative response on these two items. Your suggestion that the first sword could possibly be older than the scabbard itself was an idea that Lorenz and I were discussing right after I first acquired this piece with the possibility that the sword likely dating to somewhere between 1850 and 1890 and (as you point out) the scabbard being a later replacement. The very unusual styling of blade is one that I have never seen on any other Philippine sword before and was wondering if you have ever seen anything like it before either? Best, Robert

17th September 2016, 06:46 AM	#6
Kmaddock Member Join Date: May 2014 Location: Ireland Posts: 533	Hi Robert Looking forward to hearing how the welding was done. I have used oxo acetylene with fair success in the past but I do not have access to tig or mig so maybe these are ether for blade repair. I also do stick welding but this would be too harsh for blade work. When repairing breaks, I found it no real problem when working at the spine of the blade but where the blade becomes very thin Towards the cutting edge I found it quiet difficult not to burn through the blade. Did you find differential cooling a problem, I did in so far as I had to heat the blade either side of the weld to help ease the contraction of the metal from forming cracks. Best regards Ken