Very Good Piso Gading Sword of the Toba Batak, Sumatra

One of the rarest form of swords from Sumatra is this sword of the Toba Batak people, also known as “Piso Gading”. A slightly up-swept blade of good thickness with shallow fuller. Massive waisted handle with  gadrooned ribs.  Wood scabbard covered with bands of silver.  Both the blae and the scabbard are marked D 56, a collection catalog number (See below).

Blade 20 1/2  inches long.  Total length 24 inches. Very good condition. Blackened spots on the blade. Authentic and original 19C.  sword.

For similar swords see also: Albert G. Van Zonneveld “Traditional Weapons of the Indonesian Archipelago” Fig 421 P. 107, and Achim Sibeth. “The Batak- Peoples of the Island of Sumatra” Fig 212 P. 163

Provenance: IFICAH International Foundation of Indonesian Culture and Asian Heritage, Hollenstedt (Germany).