Ethnographic Arms & Armour
 

Go Back   Ethnographic Arms & Armour > Discussion Forums > Ethnographic Weapons

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 29th November 2010, 09:00 PM   #1
Maurice
Member
 
Maurice's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 1,324
Default old style barung! Borneo?

Here my latest addition to my collection which I am very fond of.
I was looking for such old style barung for a long time. And suddenly two of them popped up, but I only got this one unfortunately!

Features:
The scabbard is very broad, but in very good condition.

The cacatua pommel is also made of a very nice wood. Unfortunately a part of the beak and the crest had been broken off a long time ago, cause the breaks have a lot of patina on it.

The sleeve is made of horn, something I have never seen on a barung (I think there are a few in the Leiden museum with a horn sleeve, but it is hard to see on the database images). The horn has a big crack, but happily still there.

The blade was very dirty. I decided just to clean it a little of the worst dirt and rust, and than give it a slight etch with vinegar.
During etching a hardened edge popped up and also some lamination on the blade.

Any input/suggestions of which region it could derive?

Maurice
Attached Images
  
Maurice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 09:18 PM   #2
Sajen
Member
 
Sajen's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Germany, Dortmund
Posts: 8,407
Default

Hi Maurice,

I have no clue from where it is but I like it very much. Also when the outer tips of the pommel are broken is it just beautiful. Is it possible to fix the sleeve again?

Regards,

Detlef
Sajen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 09:36 PM   #3
Maurice
Member
 
Maurice's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 1,324
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sajen
Hi Maurice,

I have no clue from where it is but I like it very much. Also when the outer tips of the pommel are broken is it just beautiful. Is it possible to fix the sleeve again?
Hi Detlef,

Yes indeed beautifull. But when the outer tips were recent break offs, I wouldn't be interested in it (I can be a very strange collector considering some features I especially don't want on an item in my collection, and recent breakoffs are one of them). But happily these were old breaks...

The horn sleeve has a very old crack (which is normal on horn, as we can often see on Atjeh klewangs). The crack is over the whole length of the horn, and just connected with one fiberpiece of horn (see attached image).
I leave it just as it is. It gives character to the barung.

The horn sleeve was very firm attached around the handle when I got it, and there wasn't any tolerance. Despite my precautions of taping and protecting the handle/pommel during etching, the sleeve was getting loose and there is tolerance now after the etching. I guess it was glued once which now came loose because of the heat.
But happily there are no gluerests I can see, and I am not wiggling a lot with the sleeve. I will put the barung away very soon to prevent the horn get damaged irreversible.

Maurice
Attached Images
 
Maurice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 10:01 PM   #4
Battara
EAAF Staff
 
Battara's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Louisville, KY
Posts: 7,135
Default

This is a nice piece and I believe it is from Borneo. They sometimes used horn for their sleeves (punto). The wideness of the scabbard and style also indicate Borneo as far as I understand.
Battara is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 11:20 PM   #5
migueldiaz
Member
 
migueldiaz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Manila, Phils.
Posts: 1,042
Default

nice barung, maurice. congrats! the one in juynboll's catalogue (pic below) has a similar (broad) scabbard 'throat'. perhaps you can find out the details from the catalogue and share it to us?

when i went to museo oriental in valladolid in spain, they also have two of such barungs which scabbards are almost exactly the same as yours -- i.e., wide 'throat' (upper part of scabbard), and stylized butt end (bottom of scabbard). the museum's curators strike me as meticulous in their description of their items. thus perhaps your barung is filipino after all. but the two barungs have the traditional silver sleeve, by the way.

i'd really be interested in how juynboll described the barung below. thanks in advance!
Attached Images
 
migueldiaz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 30th November 2010, 06:58 AM   #6
Maurice
Member
 
Maurice's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 1,324
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by migueldiaz
nice barung, maurice. congrats! the one in juynboll's catalogue (pic below) has a similar (broad) scabbard 'throat'. perhaps you can find out the details from the catalogue and share it to us?

when i went to museo oriental in valladolid in spain, they also have two of such barungs which scabbards are almost exactly the same as yours -- i.e., wide 'throat' (upper part of scabbard), and stylized butt end (bottom of scabbard). the museum's curators strike me as meticulous in their description of their items. thus perhaps your barung is filipino after all. but the two barungs have the traditional silver sleeve, by the way.

i'd really be interested in how juynboll described the barung below. thanks in advance!
Thank you Lorenz!
When looking in the database of the Leiden museum you find several with that broad scabbards. I attached an image of an old photo exposition ca 1885, where also is depicted a barung with similar scabbard.

Unfortunately I don't have the Juynbolls myself, so I am not able to look it up right away. Maybe another forumite can share it with us?

There is one in the Leiden database with a clear punto made of partly horn and partly brass.

Maurice
Attached Images
 
Maurice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 11:32 PM   #7
David
Keris forum moderator
 
David's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 7,012
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sajen
Also when the outer tips of the pommel are broken is it just beautiful.
HuH???
While it wouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker for me in this case i would have to say the exact opposite, that is, what a shame that the tips are broken. I see no particular beauty in the brokenness itself.
I do like this barong regardless though...
David is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 29th November 2010, 11:47 PM   #8
Sajen
Member
 
Sajen's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Germany, Dortmund
Posts: 8,407
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by David
HuH???
While it wouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker for me in this case i would have to say the exact opposite, that is, what a shame that the tips are broken. I see no particular beauty in the brokenness itself.
I do like this barong regardless though...
Sorry, this is maybe a missunderstanding David since english isn't my native language. I have meant that the barung is just beautiful although the tips of the pommel are broken! Hope this is a better description of my conclusion.
Sajen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 30th November 2010, 03:04 AM   #9
David
Keris forum moderator
 
David's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 7,012
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sajen
Sorry, this is maybe a missunderstanding David since english isn't my native language. I have meant that the barung is just beautiful although the tips of the pommel are broken! Hope this is a better description of my conclusion.
Thanks for clearing that up Sajen, you did have me wondering...
David is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:17 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Posts are regarded as being copyrighted by their authors and the act of posting material is deemed to be a granting of an irrevocable nonexclusive license for display here.