- Joined
- Oct 11, 2000
- Messages
- 372
Having read up a lot about khukuris recently, the question eventually occurred to me: Dont we all possess COPIES of original khukuris? In fact, what is an ORIGINAL khukuri?
I quickly surmised that maybe original khukuris include the following:
1 - All khukuris made by kamis and the like, and sold to locals for household use and self-protection
2 - All khukuris made by contracted shops and issued to serving soldiers and retired officers
3 - All khukuris which have been authenticated and housed in museums or in private collections.
If this is correct, it means that all others are COPIES! But in the case of doubts, how can khukuris be authenticated?
Lt. Dan believes that the khukuris from certain respected manufacturers and distributors are the real deal, being made by bona-fide kamis for real use, and of fine quality. He offers the example of the SN1, which is the actual knife made for the present-day Gurkhas, and made by the very same hands on the same forges. These kamis also make other styles. It might seem reasonable to say that all indigenous khukuris that are well-made for hard use and in traditional fashion will meet the criteria. I do agree with him on this.
But to take it further: My point # 1 above implies that if I myself forge a blade and make a knife exactly according to khukuri specifications, and use it for chopping wood in my back garden, it will not be an original. It will be a copy. Also, even if I were a master cutler producing bench-made khukuris for sale to enthusiasts, they would not be original. One might have a factory in the USA or in SA, using high-tech rollers and presses and manufacturing khukuris en masse, and they would not be originals. So to be original, a khukuri needs to be forge-produced by a Nepalese kami, a kami being an indigenous skilled person who has learned his trade from a predecessor in the art. Now comes the hitch: surely it does not matter a hoot to whom he sells his wares. Whether a local buys the knife, or I, a collector from SA, or a tourist, gets it first, second or any hand, it is an original. It also does not matter what the buyer uses it for. So much for my # 1.
The non-originals are those which are non-functional or non-acceptable quality, made in styles which are non-traditional, by non-indigenous makers using non-traditional methods.
How am I doing?
I quickly surmised that maybe original khukuris include the following:
1 - All khukuris made by kamis and the like, and sold to locals for household use and self-protection
2 - All khukuris made by contracted shops and issued to serving soldiers and retired officers
3 - All khukuris which have been authenticated and housed in museums or in private collections.
If this is correct, it means that all others are COPIES! But in the case of doubts, how can khukuris be authenticated?
Lt. Dan believes that the khukuris from certain respected manufacturers and distributors are the real deal, being made by bona-fide kamis for real use, and of fine quality. He offers the example of the SN1, which is the actual knife made for the present-day Gurkhas, and made by the very same hands on the same forges. These kamis also make other styles. It might seem reasonable to say that all indigenous khukuris that are well-made for hard use and in traditional fashion will meet the criteria. I do agree with him on this.
But to take it further: My point # 1 above implies that if I myself forge a blade and make a knife exactly according to khukuri specifications, and use it for chopping wood in my back garden, it will not be an original. It will be a copy. Also, even if I were a master cutler producing bench-made khukuris for sale to enthusiasts, they would not be original. One might have a factory in the USA or in SA, using high-tech rollers and presses and manufacturing khukuris en masse, and they would not be originals. So to be original, a khukuri needs to be forge-produced by a Nepalese kami, a kami being an indigenous skilled person who has learned his trade from a predecessor in the art. Now comes the hitch: surely it does not matter a hoot to whom he sells his wares. Whether a local buys the knife, or I, a collector from SA, or a tourist, gets it first, second or any hand, it is an original. It also does not matter what the buyer uses it for. So much for my # 1.
The non-originals are those which are non-functional or non-acceptable quality, made in styles which are non-traditional, by non-indigenous makers using non-traditional methods.
How am I doing?
