Ethnographic Arms & Armour

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-   -   Two Interesting Moro Barong/Barung (http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=28141)

CharlesS 20th August 2022 05:17 PM

Two Interesting Moro Barong/Barung
 
8 Attachment(s)
These two Moro barong were recently acquired from one of our members...thanks RSWORD!...They are both interesting in different ways. The top example is a lovely piece in its own right, with a flawless, beautifully carved pommel, and a relatively common blade type, but it is the scabbard here that drew my attention. I have never seen a scabbard carved throughout its non-rattan-covered length, in this case with unusual floral motifs. The carved has been tinted black to highlight it.
The second example is also of superb quality, with a lovely hilt and only the second lacquered scabbard I have seen with a Moro barong, but the real eye-catcher here is the blade! The massive blade is considerably larger and heavier than a typical barong blade(compare the two examples), with a huge "belly" atypical to most barongs, and a wide reinforced edge giving it the classification of a"shandigan" blade. The blade shows no pattern welding, but you can see the glassy smooth tempered edge and its width in the pics. The piece is just a "monster" of a weapon. The scabbard had to be heavily reinforced due to the weight of the blade, and is pegged together with almost a dozen pegs! The rattan was probably an afterthought to add additional reinforcement.

kai 21st August 2022 11:02 AM

The big one certainly is a bummer, Charles!

The hilt strikes me as typical Tausug (I guess this style may be also found outside of the core area inhabited if only for travel/expat communities/trade).

The scabbard seems to have stylistic elements of Sama culture (even if less extensively covered by carving as often seen).

The blade shape does resemble pieces from Maranao or even Palawan and Sabah. Even if it doesn't show contrasting laminations, have you already tried etching, Charles?

Regards,
Kai

JeffS 21st August 2022 02:57 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Nice set. I scored a little barong, also in nearly perfect shape from RSWORD.

CharlesS 21st August 2022 04:43 PM

Lovely piece, Jeff. Interesting to that even though it’s a smaller example of the blade profile of yours is very similar to my large example with what I call a “big belly”.

Battara 21st August 2022 08:26 PM

Charles I love the carving on the long one.

Ian 21st August 2022 11:07 PM

Charles,

Your heavy, fat-bellied sword looks quite old to me. That style of hilt is a junggayan form from the 19th C, and fat-bellied barung seemed to be more common then. The forward weighting of the blade and the slightly upturned tip might suggest a Palawano or Zamboanga origin. It's a very interesting sword.

I have heard a theory that the barung may have derived originally from a fat-bellied chopper, like this one, possibly of Chinese origin.

Battara 22nd August 2022 11:44 PM

Picture please Ian?


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