Philippine Insurrection swd. or Espada Ancha swd.?

drac2k · 12th October 2014, 07:00 PM

I recently purchased this sword at auction and it was listed as a Spanish-Mexican Colonial Espada Ancha sword which is certainly possible, however upon cleaning I noticed some inlaid writing and motifs carved into the blade that made me wonder if it could be Philippine Insurrection.The sword blade measures approx. 25.5 " and has seen heavy use as pictured.
Any help would be appreciated as to it's origins .

Ian · 12th October 2014, 08:45 PM

Hi Drac2k:

This looks like European colonial work to me, perhaps Spanish but could be Dutch or French or British colonial work also. I don't think there is anything really specific to the style to call it an Espada ancha without more idea of where it came from. The riveted iron guard looks fairly basic work, but the steel blade looks well crafted.

The decoration on the blade near the back edge is not typical of Philippine's work--looks a little like Continental SE Asian design as seen in the northern Thailand/Laos area, or even some of the Borneo designs. Unless someone else has a well provenanced piece that is remarkably similar, I think you may have trouble placing this one.

An Espada ancha from Mexico is probably the most familiar exemplar of this style, but I have purchased similar swords in Singapore, Ahmedabad, Bangkok, Vientiane, and Bangalore over the last 20-30 years and I doubt that they were all of Spanish origin.

Ian.

drac2k · 13th October 2014, 01:18 PM

Thanks Ian,
The Thailand/Laos possibility is very interesting and I fear you are right about the difficulty about determining it's origins.I wish I could decipher the script inlaid on the blade .

12th October 2014, 07:00 PM	#1
drac2k Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 1,174	Philippine Insurrection swd. or Espada Ancha swd.? I recently purchased this sword at auction and it was listed as a Spanish-Mexican Colonial Espada Ancha sword which is certainly possible, however upon cleaning I noticed some inlaid writing and motifs carved into the blade that made me wonder if it could be Philippine Insurrection.The sword blade measures approx. 25.5 " and has seen heavy use as pictured. Any help would be appreciated as to it's origins . Attached Images

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12th October 2014, 08:45 PM	#2
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,023	Hi Drac2k: This looks like European colonial work to me, perhaps Spanish but could be Dutch or French or British colonial work also. I don't think there is anything really specific to the style to call it an Espada ancha without more idea of where it came from. The riveted iron guard looks fairly basic work, but the steel blade looks well crafted. The decoration on the blade near the back edge is not typical of Philippine's work--looks a little like Continental SE Asian design as seen in the northern Thailand/Laos area, or even some of the Borneo designs. Unless someone else has a well provenanced piece that is remarkably similar, I think you may have trouble placing this one. An Espada ancha from Mexico is probably the most familiar exemplar of this style, but I have purchased similar swords in Singapore, Ahmedabad, Bangkok, Vientiane, and Bangalore over the last 20-30 years and I doubt that they were all of Spanish origin. Ian.

13th October 2014, 01:18 PM	#3
drac2k Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 1,174	Thanks Ian, The Thailand/Laos possibility is very interesting and I fear you are right about the difficulty about determining it's origins.I wish I could decipher the script inlaid on the blade .