East Asian katana/mandau
Measurements
A truely intriguing set of weapons. This is a turn-of-the-century Japanese
katana with a hand forged laminated blade that has been converted into an
east Asian mandau. The blade still maintains the original habaki, and both
the habaki and tang are stamped "358". Heavy bone-cleaving blade is 5/16"
thick at the spine, and the lamination layers and hamon line are clearly
evident. The grip/handle is of European stag horn. The companion knife, or
"boyo" is of the same laminated steel, originally the tip of the katana,
mounted in a deer antler grip. The sheath that holds the pair is cherry
wood. A magnificent rendition of a traditional parang nabur/parang
latok styled combat mandau, reclaimed from a very thick Japanese katana that
had been unfortunately twisted by a previous owner who must have been
attempting to use it as a crowbar. Even treasure-grade katana won't stand up
to that abuse ... this sword was saved/reclaimed/reworked by
weaponsmith Tom Hyle of Colorado.
length: 25 1/2"
blade: 18 3/4"
blade width: 1 1/4"
grip: 6"
weight (mandau): 1 lb 9.8 oz
weight (companion knife): 2.4 oz
weight (sword, knife, scabbard): 2 lb 3.6 oz
