small dha

[Freddy]

I received this knife today. It's a small dha. The seller said it was a buddhist Meed Maw dha, a knife used by priests.

I don't know much about the subject, so I'm asking the more knowledgeable forum members for some help.

This knife has a total length of 22,5 cm. The handle measures 8 cm and is wound with rattan. The blade measures 12cm. It's about 4 mm thick near the handle and tapers towards the tip. One feature I haven't seen on a dha is that the blade has a false edge starting one third up the back of the knife.

True, it's a crudely made knife and I personally don't think it belonged to a priest. Perhaps just a small utility knife.

[Freddy]

[katana]

Hi Freddy,
so it was you that 'out bid' me ....I think it would be just called a Meed Morph or possibly, a meed eneb, a utility knife, however I think the blade shape is different.

The Meed Maw, I believe are slightly more decorated and are generally talismatic.

Regards David

[Freddy]

Sorry, David. I just couldn't control myself. I had to go for it. It looked (and is) a nice knife.

And what about these two other pieces ?

The middle one is a more decorative piece with a bone handle and silver sheath. (total length : 22 cm)

The top piece is recent, but still a nice, functional knife. (length : 26,5 cm)

[wilked aka Khun Deng]

Freddy meed maw (lit. doctor knife) or meed phra (lit. preist knife) are as katana stated talismanic and while they come in varying sizes from penknife to full blown dha what makes them meed phra is the blessing they receive from a Buddhist priest. The more venerated the Buddhist priest the more potent and expensive they are. Sometimes the priests would wrap a hair or a small paper prayer around the tang before the smith finished assembly.

Different temples and makers will have different designs on the blades generally near the hilt. While I haven't seen one with this particular blade profile or design it does show some age and the handle wrap and scabbard manufacture are of the old technique so I'd say you have a nice piece there.
BTW these can be QUITE expensive in Thailand.

As for the other two;
The top one I'm at a loss it almost looks like someone mixed styles when they added the new scabbard, but the blade itself with the upturned tip follows the profile of other meed phra I've seen and I've seen a similar handle (although using pewter instead the brass ferrules) but that scabbard doesn't seem to fit at all.

The middle knife is a newer example of a northern hill tribe knife (Mark has the actual name - it escapes me right now). Every male member of the hill tribes carries these. The blades are generally of less than stellar quality and the ivory on this one shows none of the yellowing I'd expect with age, but a very nice piece none the less.

Dan

[Nathaniel]

Good to hear from Khun Deng.

Here are my some more to add:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=5162