Archaic Moro barung

[Ian]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Thank you Ian! Funnily I've purchased it once by a German auction house as single bidder.

Regards,
Detlef

Detlef,

I think there has been a lack of general knowledge until recently about these archaic styles of barung and an undervaluing of them by the market. They are rather "plain" compared with some later examples, and maybe not considered very desirable. As I noted already, the style of hilt is one of my favorites and I think it is a beautiful example of Moro art and craftmanship. However, with increasing awareness of these older forms, the days of finding "sleepers" may be coming to an end (like archaic kris and twist core examples, which are now much more expensive than 10-15 years ago).

In the recent auction where I purchased the one I posted at the head of this thread there was an early 20th C barung with a fancier carved pommel that went for the same price.