Philippine bolos

on second thought, if you're into fantasy swords loosely based on filipino design, the above link is your best resource.

firehand, that was in SM Megamall. That's in the 4th floor bldg. A. the store's name is World Treasures. And if you will be here in the country sometime soon. Try visiting "Tiendesitas" in Pasig City.

highlander?

firehand,
imelda marcos' authority on filipino weapon is about as valid as my grandma's. just because she's filipino, it doesn't mean it's accurate. that's the scary thing about the internet; the perpetuation of false information. just because the seller's description are more than ten words, again, it doesn't mean it's accurate.
here are some example:



VISAYANBARONG – The Barong (sometimes spelled Borung) is a leaf shaped bolos that are popularized by the Muslims, especially the Tausug tribes of the Southern Philippines. Which later on reached the Mangyan Tribes of Mindoro and Tagalogs of the Eastern Luzon Provinces. When this sword crossed the island from Mindanao to the Visayas, it was modified to give it a more effective use, a hilt was added at the spine, and the handle was modified because of the small hands of the native workers. The unique leaf-shaped blade makes the Barong distinguishable from other Filipino weaponry. Though weird looking to most people, these Barong Bolos have the most comfortable grip when used as a utility tool, and is one of the easiest to maneuver when used as a weapon. It’s so funny how such a humorous design can be such a brutal weapon. This blade is a powerful addition to the Filipino practitioners collection.

ok, visayans culturally never carry barongs, nor did the mangyans, and it never reached the tagalog region. as a matter of fact, the only known tribe that carry barong as their side weapons, besides the tausugs, were the yakans of basilan. as far as the seller's design on the "visayan barong" it's actually more of a rare type of barong with the shandigan blade, that's all. the pommel design on this one is closer to what a real barong looks like than the original barong he was selling.

KAMPILAN BOLO

KAMPILAN BOLO – Not many Filipinos can handle the large sword called Kampilan, but it does not mean that the Kampilan bolo was created just for people who cannot handle a bigger bolo. This Kampilan is more of a commoners sword where the bigger Kampilan is more of a status symbol. In other words, the Kampilan bolo, which is known as another sword rich in Filipino history, is used by men who serve their Datus. The Datus are the high ranking and rich man of a tribe in the Philippines.

lol at the "Not many Filipinos can handle the large sword called Kampilan, but it does not mean that the Kampilan bolo was created just for people who cannot handle a bigger bolo." i can almost see ol' gapar the moro saying, 'man, this sword is heavy. i think i'm gonna use the kris today'. kampilan were the favored weapons by the maguindanaons, but are also carried by the iranuns during their piratical expedition. maranaos are also known to carry kampilans, but there are no record whether the suluano moros carry these beasts. this particular sword he's selling looks more like the swordsf of the bagobo people, a non muslim tribe.

i like this next one:
TALIBONG

The "Talibon" or "Talibong" sword’s exaggerated belly indicates its uniqueness. This lady sword was seen in the northern Philippines during the later part of the Spanish era to the early American regime. Used for hunting, this sword’s shape can both cut grass easily (while hunting animals) and slaughter the game when caught. The handle used to be simple and ordinary until it was modified by the Filipinos to be used as a weapon during the later part of the Spanish era. The handle was designed to protect the fingers from getting cut during an encounter.

ok, he almost got the name right on this one. the blade form is known as talibon, or garab, which was the pulahan sect's favorite side arm. pulajans are christian cult, also known as tadtad, meaning 'chop-chop'. the pulajans are very fanatical, the christian equivalent of a moro gone amuck, or a juramentado. hurley's book, "jungle patrol" (www.bakbakan.com) covers a chapter about this sect. the handle. as far as the handle is concern, i believe whoever thought of this run out of idea and decided to copy an umbrella handle. the correct handle for this type of sword is similar to the "garab sword" he's selling.



the information are so erroneous that i prefer to categorize these swords under Fantasy. if that's what you want, more power to you, but if you want to collect swords that are close to what they're suppose to look like, i'd suggest to do a research before spending your hard earned money.

you're right; i didn't say nor insinuated you said that but since her name was mentioned, i'm assuming with her name attached on the book, it must be accurate which is altogether false. maybe if it was a book about shoes ;D ;D ;D

as far as "Not entirely historically accurate" , that's an understatement. not only it is historically inaccurate, but also the description are so off the seller might as well sell a butter knife and describe it as a syke-fairbairn dagger. that's why on my earlier post, i mentioned this:

thank you! i was hoping someone would catch that .

you see? that's how it is with filipino swords. little variation makes a lot of difference enough to be called something else

Joe: i really like the look of those blades on that site and since indeed i know nothing about filipino weapons i would probably purchase what i like the look or although CAS Iberia do very nice L6 weapons to. I always buy what i like the look of

and what about these?

bloodwraith, nothing wrong with buying those weapons from that site. if that's what you collect, by all means, go for it. not once in any of my posts did i mentioned not to buy from that site. maybe, as rammstein has stated, you don't care what it's called, as long as you like the way it looks. that's all good, friend. i just prefer to call those fantasy swords loosely based on filipino design.



that's perfectly understandable, bloodwraith, based on what you previously said: