Sword (Kalis or Sundang) and scabbard, before 1916
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Sword (Kalis or Sundang) and scabbard

before 1916

Medium
Blade: metal with brass inlay; grip: cord; pommel: silver
Classification
Arms and Armor
Dimensions
Overall: 71.3 x 11.1 x 3.2 cm (28 1/16 x 4 3/8 x 1 1/4 in.); Scabbard: 56.1 x 5.1 x 1.8 cm (22 1/16 x 2 x 11/16 in.)
Culture
Philippines, Mindanao
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art, Oceania
Credit line
Gift of J. H. Wade
Rights
Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed

View at the Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This sword has a straight kalis blade with squared shoulders, a long central fuller, and an engraved chevron-and-scroll pattern above the guard. The wing guards at the base of the blade are held in place by two asang-asang (fish gill) clamps. The hilt terminates with a silver cockatoo (kakatua)-shaped pommel. Silver pommels of this type are associated with elite datu owners.