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Old 15th September 2020, 12:55 PM   #23
Peter Dekker
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Kingdom of the Netherlands
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Hi,

Hmmm... in my observations, it’s the Shan dha that’s typically the light one, it even appears as “a light form of dha” in some of the earliest Burmese-English dictionaries and this is in accordance to what I’m used to seeing among them.

Many Burmese seem to have preferred a heavier dha, regardless their class. Look at this one, exact same blade as the fancy ones, 12.5mm at forte. I recall some 900 grams total and in no way very different in size, weight, blade construction, temper and balance from the more fancy, well-decorated pieces:


Now Shan dha, are mostly in a different class. Lighter, more nimble, balanced as you describe.

Also, it would strike me as odd to use a heavier but not really useful "weapon" as regalia, as normally a weapon gets lighter as it loses function, not heavier. You can put the exact same amount of decoration on each flat of a thinner blade, which is exactly what happened in the 1920s and 1930s when adorned, but light and untempered blades were mounted in silver repousse scabbards of the highest order.

Last edited by Ian; 15th September 2020 at 01:02 PM. Reason: Links to commercial web sites are not permitted
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