RSword Antique Blades

Very fine Persian Kilij sword with chiseled inscription and wootz blade. This is a beast of a sword measuring 36” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle consists of wood slab grips secured to the tang via two rivets on each side. There is a silver plate secured beneath the top rivet on each side of the pommel. The silver alloy tang band runs between the slabs and over the pommel and features an interlacing rope decoration down the center. The crossguard is of wootz steel. The pattern is quite visible and the majority of it is present. The blade is very attractive and quite large. It measures 1 3/4” at its widest points. There is a chiseled inscription panel on one side and the opposite side has two cartouche, one with inscription and the second with a lion. The blade has a well defined spine due to the hollow grind/wide fuller. The spine with rolled edges that continue along the false edge. The blade is forged of wootz steel showing a lovely pattern and color. There are a couple of edge nicks in spots. The scabbard was made about 10-15 years ago by Tomas Kaczor who was one of the top restorers of his time and did fabulous scabbard work as can been seen by this example. It adds value to the sword and is done in the proper style with fine decorations included. All in all, a very attractive sword.

$4495

Fine Moro Kris Sword with Rare Saramanok Handle and Very Wavy Blade. This Kris measures 26 1/4” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle features a very rare pommel in the form of a Saramanok, a legendary bird in Filipino lore and carved from Carabao horn. The grip with alternating bands of rattan alternating between thick and chunky and thin braided strands. The ferrule at the base of the handle is silver. The 21 luk blade is lovely. Beautiful waves with a darkened zone along the edges with the center panel showing some layering. The sword is probably late 19th century while the scabbard is more 1930’s to 1940’s but nice in its own right and fits the sword well. It has a very finely grained wood with metal alloy mounts with rattan bands. There are some strips of copper at the top and bottom mounts along with a chape of copper. Reminds me of some punal scabbard treatments. All in all, a very nice Moro Kris sword with rare Saramanok handle and fine high luk blade.

$695

Massive African Sudanese Kaskara with large European Blade. This humongous sword measures 41 3/4” in total length. The blade alone is 36 1/2” long and 2 1/8” wide at the forte. The handle is wood with a circular wood pommel with remnants of leather wrap. About 35-40% of the leather covering remains. The crossguard is brass. The blade is very well made, likely European given the overall quality, with double edges and a nice central fuller. The blade is not flimsy for its size. The blade is very solid in that it doesn’t bend under its own weight as a long thin blade might. It has a very good heft, good temper and would be a formidable weapon. A very nice Kaskara of unusually large proportions, fine blade and appearance.

$495 On Hold

Old Indian Katar dagger with Gold Koftgari handle. This Katar is 16 1/4” in total length with a blade that is 8 3/4” long and 1 3/4” wide at the forte. The grip and side bars are steel that have been covered in gold koftgari which is now worn. Probably about 55-60% of the gold koftgari remains. The blade with a thickened armor piercing tip with a shallow panel in the center of the blade. The blade with very dark patina throughout. The blade and some of the side bars with some pitting. Likely a late 18th to early 19th century Katar. The blade is likely of wootz steel but unable to discern with the current level of patina. Has a nice look, as is, in untouched and well patina appearance.

$375

Nice Indian helmet with silver koftgari. This helmet features a faceted bowl which is covered in silver koftgari. The chiseled lines give the helmet nice definition. There are plume holders on the side holding peacock feathers and a nasal guard to the front. The chain mail is intact and in good shape. There is also a spike to the top of the helmet. An attractive late 19th century Indian helmet.

$495

Indian Tulwar Sword with Silver Chevron Pattern Hilt and Wootz Blade. This sword measures 31 1/2” in total length when measured in its scabbard. Without the scabbard it measures 30” in total length. The handle is iron covered in a silver chevron pattern. The pattern is fairly intact on the grip section but it worn on the top and bottom of the wheel pommel. The blade is forged of wootz steel and has a slight forward curve to it. The wootz has a lovely pattern to it with a few minor areas of fading. The forward curve is interesting. Kind of like a Sossun Pata but the blade geometry is different. It has a hollow grind/shallow fuller. There is a fold seam along the spine as often is found on wootz or pattern welded blades. The scabbard is red velvet over wood. The metal mount at the top of the scabbard is missing and there is a little bit of wood loss so the fit at the top isn’t great but this scabbard was made for this sword. A nice Indian sword with interesting silver chevron handle and a nice wootz blade.

$1595 On Hold

Old Filipino Ifugao Pinahig Sword with Lovely Textile belt. This sword measures 18 3/4’ in total length with a blade that is 2 1/2” at its widest point. So a good sized and large Pinahig. The socketed handle features lovely rattan wrap. The blade with good dark patina. The open faced scabbard with absolutely lovely textile belt with lovely colors of blue and orange. The scabbard with some chip carving to the backside. A rare and early Filipino Ifugao piece.

$295

18th Century Spanish Rapier Sword likely made for a child or person of small stature. This sword measures 30” in total length. The handle consists of a grip with alternating strips of horn and bone. It has an urn shaped pommel. The knucklebow with beaded decoration attaches to the straight bar that goes out each side. There is a ring that goes from the straight bar to the split shell guard. The blade is narrow with a finely forged fuller for the first 5 1/2” of the blade. From there the blade has a squared ridge line running most of the length of the blade and then strong beveled edges from there. The tip has rounded in time. A very well made sword that was quite functional. The blade is well made and stiff enough to have been a formidable weapon. A rare rapier given its size.

$795

Very nice Arabian Zanzibar Saif Nimcha sword. This sword measures 40” in total length. The handle is either horn or wood. It has a very deep and rich patina so difficult to determine. The nimcha style pommel is covered in a brass cap also of very lovely patina. The ferrule, knucklebow and the ring guard are all steel. The slightly curved blade, probably of European manufacture, with complex fullering. The blade with good patina. A nice and old, probably late 18th to early 19th century, Arabian Saif sword.

$695

Aboriginal Woomera Spear Thrower from Inland Western or Central Australia. This example measures 28 3/4” long and is 4 7/8” at its widest point. The top, which holds the spear, has an animal tooth with good patina and wrapped in rattan and the bottom with a roundish grip for holding. The surface of the front has line and dot carvings. The reverse is plain and you can see the lines where it has been hand carved without mechanical tools. An impressive ethnographic object dating to the late 19th to early 20th century.

$695

Very fine and tall African Woven Basketry Shield of the Poto tribe. The shield is 52 1/2” tall by 17” wide. It is in very good condition overall. It has lovely, inked decoration down the front of the shield. The weaving and skill to make this shield is very impressive. The back of the shield has a wood board woven into the shield with the center piece carved out and then two narrow handles laid across the top of the board with the rattan weaving going across the top. It is not a very heavy shield but is solid and very well made. This would make a fantastic display piece.

$795

Fine African Shield of the Ngbaka/Ngbundu/Ngombe/Manza/Mabo Tribes. This style and form of shield was used amongst a good number of tribes within the African Congo. It measures 55” tall by 20 1/2” wide. It is a fine basket weave shield with complex weaving throughout. The shield has some rigidity with the hump in the middle of the shield but some flexibility around the top and bottom. The shield is in very good condition with just a few losses at the bottom and top of the shield and a little bit of wear around the edges. The back of the shield has a long wood board with a carved out middle section with handle and then intricate rattan weaving all around the edges to secure it to the shield. A very fine African shield.

$595

Very nice Indian Naga spear. This spear measures 92” in total length. It features a very nice steel spearhead of socket form with ribbed edges at the base and some line decoration at the base of the blade. Nice color and patina to the steel. The spearhead has a bit of wiggle to it. I think some of the wood has rotted or deteriorated on the inside which causes it to not have a snug fit to the pole. It will display just fine but you shouldn’t hunt wild board with it. It has 2 sections of red dyed coarse animal hair with the lowest one having the hair loose. It is missing its metal finial at the bottom. All in all, this is a nice and old Naga spear. One of the nicer ones I have seen.

$395 plus shipping/handling. Will require a special tube to ship in.

Very nice long Spanish American war period Filipino Luzon sword with 1870 dated coin. This sword measures a little over 28 1/2” in total length. The handle has a reeded grip of either wood or carabao horn with lovely patina and steel ferrule and pommel also with good dark patina. The top of the pommel is a Spanish Coin that is from around 1870. It states “Diez Centimos” and also “Cien Piezas En Kilog”. The tang peining goes through the lion over the shield in the center of the coin. It dates to the provisional Spanish government in place from 1868-1871. This was a volatile time for the Spanish rule in the Philippines. The handle also has an S shaped guard. The blade is nice with a long false edge and slightly upswept tip. The blade has a nice dark glossy patina. There is floral decorations on each side of the blade at the forte. A very good and quite early Luzon sword.

$695

Nice Borneo Dayak Jimpul Sword with Sarawak 1892 dated coin guard. This sword measures 28 1/2” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle consists of the staghorn pommel that is very well carved. The carvings are done in relief around the sides and back of the pommel. There is some intricate and fine carving in the handle. The grip is finely braided rattan. The guard is a Sarawak coin that is dated 1892. One side of the coin says “Sarawak and 1892” and the opposite side says “C Brooke and Rajah”. Very nice curved blade with fine decorations at the forte along with a brass extension below the blade. The blade sports a good fuller on both sides and the blade widens towards the tip. The blade has a good sized chip out of it near the tip. Very good scabbard including a bone adornment on one side. Very nice rattan weaved wrap and the red and yellow rope attachment completes the ensemble. A very good and early, judging by the coin guard, Dayak Jimpul Sword.

$895

Flores Island Belida sword with rare twistcore blade. Belida swords are very scarce to begin with and to have an example with a super fine twistcore blade adds to the level of rarity for this example. The sword measures 35” in total length. The long handle is wood. There is a hollow out section on one side and a hole at the pommel. At one time there would have been some additional adornments around the handle that are now gone. The wood has a rich dark patina. There is an ivory section towards the bottom of the grip showing lovely color and patina. It sports a pewter guard and ferrule and a number of pewter inlays. Some of the inlays are missing. The blade is fantastic. It is narrow at the forte and widens towards the tip. It is forged of twistcore steel and demonstrates fine layering around the twistcore center panel. A rare sword with fine twistcore blade.

$1995

Very nice Filipino Talibon sword. This is an unusual Talibon variant given the handle style. The sword is a large one measuring 27 1/2” in total length. The handle is wood with a bifurcated pommel that turns down on each side but further down on one side. The grip sports brass or bronze ferrule, strap around the grip and a plate across the top of the pommel. The ferrule is faceted as is the grip. The guard is a thin brass sheet in the shape of a shield. It has a slight wiggle to it. The blade is very nice. Long blade with nice belly and a wide bevel. The opposite side is flat. Elongated tip. This Talibon variant is very well made and could represent a transition piece between the 19th century examples and the later mid 20th century examples. The blade on this one is almost on par with the good 19th century examples. It is well forged and shows many similarities to the older examples but is missing the thumb rest on the spine found on the earlier examples, but it is much nicer than the mid 20th century examples in quality of blade and hilt. The shield guard is likely a later addition. I would put this piece to the 1920-30’s with the shield guard being added later. A good quality Filipino sword.

$425

Very nice, rare set of 3 African Baule Swords with shell scabbards. These 3 are being sold as a set and offer the buyer an opportunity to acquire very good examples of these prestige knives but also a very rare diminutive or child’s example. The largest example measures 17 1/4” long when measured in its scabbard and has a scabbard that is 4 1/2” at its widest. The middle-sized example is 14” long when measured in its scabbard that is 4” at its widest. The rare small example is 9 1/2” long measured in its scabbard that is 2” at its widest. Each example is well made with fine wood handles, the middle-sized example with fine lattice work carvings and each adorned in various ways with brass tacks. All 3 have leather scabbards with red spondylus shells to the front. The smallest example the leather has pulled apart and the blade sticks out from the bottom. Each example with good blade. Each on their own represent a fine African knife and together form a wonderful collection that will display very well.

$1995

Rare published African sword empute of the Lokele. This sword is pictures on p. 214 of the book “100 African Blades from 55 Collections” by Ethan Rider. He writes:

“Short sword and sheath, empute

Lokele/So/Mba/Angba/Topoke/Genya

Democratic Republic of Congo

Late 19th Century

This empute short sword is impressive without its sheath. It has a heavy pommel made of solid iron, a wood handle wrapped in copper and brass, and a blade that is covered with incredibly precise incising. Most empute blades have no sheath, and some of the few that do have one that is slim and plain. The most elaborate empute swords come with a sheath like the one seen here: oversized and decorated with two huge iron discs. This design element is entirely unique to empute swords and is a beautiful, highly distinctive style. “

Another interesting feature of this piece is the hole at the top of the scabbard. It goes all the way through and is likely a bullet hole. No telling how that got there but what a fascinating story to know. The sword measures 16 1/2” long when measured in its scabbard. A very fine published African sword.

$1495

Large East Javanese Keris Sword. This Keris measures 21” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle is done in what looks like an abstract figure and is faceted. It is a two toned wood. The mendak is a metal alloy with some areas of wear. The blade is large and beefy with a bold visible pamor. The scabbard is quite nice. The wood is two toned and has some interesting lines/grain throughout. A good example of an East Javanese Keris.

$225

Javanese Keris Sword with Very Nice Gilt Brass Scabbard. This Keris measures 20 1/4” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle is wood, with nice grain, which is faceted and carved. Nice mendak with white stones. Nice wavy blade with a visible pamor pattern showing in lighter colors and nice contrast to the darker blade background. The scabbard has a wood wrangka of a nicely grained wood and then the scabbard is a gilt brass with fine floral carvings to the front.

$149

Bugis Keris Sword from Sulawesi or Sumbawa with Twistcore Blade. This Keris measures 19” in total length when measured in it scabbard. The handle is wood in rekko style with brass mendak with decorations and scalloped edges. The blade is quite nice. It has an inserted panel of twistcore steel. The pattern has a lighter, almost silvery colored background with the twists in a blackish color that matches the coloration of the rest of the blade. The gangya with fine horizontal laminations. Very nice and attractive blade. The scabbard is wood with nice grain.

$795

Nice Old Complete Javanese Keris Sword. This Keris measures 19 1/4” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle is wood and is faceted and carved. Mendak is brass with roped borders and stacked twisted wire in the center portion. Heavy stout blade with fine longitudinal layering. Some wear to the edges of the blade. The scabbard with nice wood wrangka and the stem is wrapped in a metal alloy with an exposed wood section on one side. A nice complete Javanese Keris.

$149

Interesting Timor Sword with Sundang Style handle. This sword measures 24” when it is measured in its scabbard. The handle reminds me a bit of a Malaysian sundang handle. It looks like a Kakatua bird handle. The construction is quite different though. It is made of wood with a split on each side of the lower half of the handle. The tang fits in on one side and the opposite side has a piece of metal that runs up from the ferrule. There is also a rivet on each side. The metal has some type of residue that presumably was used to help secure the handle to the tang. Has a brass ferrule and a square guard. The thin, flexible blade has a black patina with some patches of oxidation/rusting. There are quite a few nicks along the spine. Unsure what caused so many nicks in the spine of the sword. The scabbard is wood with twine wrap at the top. An unusual sword most likely of Timorese origin.

$225

Very good African Manding dagger with scabbard. A very attractive knife that measures 13 1/8” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle is wood with brass bindings and a bell shaped brass pommel. The top band is missing about half of its wrap. The brass with decorations. Very intricate work in the handle. Nice clean, sharp blade with a central fuller, double edges and chiseled decorations along the central fuller. The scabbard features leather sections of brown and black color and brass bands with decorations. The very bottom of the scabbard is leather over wood. This section the wood core has broken and it moves around. It is stable when the blade is inserted. Again, very nice workmanship throughout the scabbard. All in all, a very well made knife with intricate detailed work.

$349

African Tuareg brass handled dagger with sheath. This knife measures 15 5/8” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle is cast brass which features a cross design in the pommel within a diamond shaped outline with knobs on the two sides and the top. The slender grip is covered with X shaped designs. The ferrule with intricate line carvings. The double edged blade is hand hammered and likely shaped from scrap metal versus being forged. The scabbard is leather with fine stitching along the back and nice tooled decorations to the front. The leather is split on each side from the blade coming in contact as it is pulled and replaced. There is a single long leather tassel attached to the scabbard. An attractive knife.

$325

Very large and nice African Fang Sword. This is a huge example. In researching published examples most were in the 19 to 22” range and I did find one at 24”. This example, measured out of the scabbard, is 27 3/4” in total length. It sports a massive blade that is 20 1/4” long and 3 1/4” at its widest point. The handle is cylindrical with a brass pommel cap and an iron banded grip. Below this is a wood carved section and an extended wood section that sits in the open tang of the sword. It is wrapped at the base in metal wire. There is some wood loss that would have originally covered the extended metal piece at the top of the tang. The blade is massive. It is double edged with a long extended point. There are two fullers on both sides that have old black scale with the remaining portions of the blade polished out. There are some line carvings at the forte of the blade on both sides. The scabbard is some form of reptile skin over a wood core. A very attractive Fang sword of larger than normal proportions.

$995

Fantastic African Chieftan Tebu dagger large example with wide blade. This is the nicest Tebu dagger I have seen or owned. It measures 20 3/4” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The handle has a slim grip that is covered in well worked leather that is black and brown with the mid grip of reptile skin with leather laced in between. The pommel is an iron arrowhead. The blade measures 11 7/8” long and is 2 1/2” wide at the forte. The blade has lovely geometric designs carved into it. The decoration is on both sides. The scabbard is leather with a leather armband at the top with leather tassels. The body of the scabbard is leather and ribbed. The fish tail bottom of the scabbard is covered in reptile skin. there is an old tag that states “South Africa Chieftan’s Fish Dagger”. Of course, the Tebu are found in Chad in the North of Africa. The overall quality of this piece and the size of it do indicate it was owned be a person of status and possibly a Chieftan so I can agree with that portion of the tag. A very fine Tebu dagger of great quality and size.

$525

Nice Moroccan Shula short sword. It measures 25 3/4” in total length when measured in its scabbard. The I shaped handle is wood that is covered completely in brass. The front side with decorative stippling and the reverse plain. The slightly curved blade with triple fullers to both sides with a series of X markings to both sides. The blade gradually tapers to a very long point that is slightly bent and rounded at the tip. The scabbard is wood that is completely covered in brass. Very nice stippled decorations to the front and plain on the back. A good and complete example of the type.

$225

Balinese Tombak Sword with Interesting Handle. This tombak measures 18 1/4” long when measured in its scabbard. The handle is interesting. It depicts a figure with an elaborate head dress that seems to include a mask over the eyes. It is seated with arms crossed across its midsection and an apron or some form of clothing is hanging between the legs. It is carved from wood. The mendak is quite unusual. It is a thick piece of metal with some bronze coating that is mostly worn off with a raised central section. The wavy blade exhibits a pamor pattern and features two holes at the base of the blade. The scabbard is plain wood. The blade is likely quite old.

$249