T'BOLI KAMPILAN
 

Hi friends,

Sharing a lumad kampilan.
The blade, in my opinion, is t'boli (?)- but the scabbard is another story. I've read stories that some t'boli kampilans would have their scabbards from another tribe (or Visayans, as some of them live near this tribe). The design on the scabbard....well, this confuses me:-)

Note: the scabbard is made from hardwood material- quite heavy.

Any imputs/opinions would be greatly appreciated. And thanks in advance.

Kind regards

Yves

NICE piece! Based on the pics I see here, you may find more activity than typical on these in the blade if you etch it.

The scabbard is magnificent and looks old. Certainly not typical for these, but lovely.

Hi Yves,

When I first saw this scabbard I thought it had a "Palawano feel," mainly because of the rows of diamond shapes. The same feature is seen on scabbards of a Palawano bangkung. and badung, where these lines frame different segments of the carving. This is the closest resemblance I could find.

The attachments show enlarged pictures of your scabbard and comparison pictures from my Palawano bangkung scabbard and a badung (arrows) posted by xasterix. The angled rope holder on your example is different, however, and more suggestive of Visayan forms. Zamboanga is a another source of similar holders.

How and why a T'boli tok would end up in a Palawano scabbard, I don't know. Perhaps Zamboanga is a better option, being a sizeable city where the various styles may have met.

Ian.


P.S. The carved table is beautiful too.

.

T'BOLI KAMPILAN
 

Hi all,

Many thanks for the information. According to my father, this piece was purchased from a collector in Davao City many years ago.

We also have other T'boli kampilans- one with the 'traditional' square scabbard, with a bit of a twist, and another one with a Visayan scabbard (will post them).

Kindest regards,

Yves