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A 19th Century Malay Warrior's Sword - Piso Podang
This sword, one of the popular fighting weapons of the Malayan warrior during the 19th century, came from Southern Perak. However the design has its roots in the Toba Batak people of Sumatra where such sword have been made for centuries. The design was originally influenced by the Indian “Tulwar” sword where its specific hilt shape is evident, the major difference being the pommel which replaces the simple Indian finial with a hollow inverted cup and finial.
This example in our collection has a single edged strong and flexible “Fullered” (the rounded or beveled groove or slot in the flat side of a blade, sometimes call the blood line) and curved steel blade, 23 inches long with a long back edge. The white brass hilt is of a typical form, approximately 5 inches long, with the telltale reverse cup shape pommel with protruding central finial has some damage to the hit.
Immediately below the hilt there is an interesting maker’s mark of a sword with two points, the design of which is reflected in the bottom of the original wooden scabbard, which is also mounted with silver in traditional designs. Total length of sword in scabbard is 32 inches.
This is a great collector’s piece.