- Joined
- Mar 2, 2010
- Messages
- 1,416
I was quite excited to receive the new Hanuman khukuri made by Rajkumar, "The Prince" Kami. The look was quite striking verses the old style one I had made by "The Tiger", Sher. It had wild hair and even stunning eyes that menaced out from a broad, smiling face. The shape of the blade was also new, reminiscent of the Uncle Bill Especiale but lacking any fullers and much thinner in profile. In short, it was a Hanuman for the New Millennium.
here is his mark...
Gone was the full tool kit of the old style Hanuman blade, replaced with an equally well carved set of a Karda and Chackmak. The little guys looked pretty cool and if these were made, as they are traditionally, by the apprentices in the shop, then we are sure in for the long haul's worth of artwork from this Kami's shop. In this case though it is my bet that Rajkumar himself made these little guys...
The blade and the bolster are unbelievably beautiful... the time this must have taken is hard to imagine for me. All the little hammer strikes and the time to engrave the lines and do the inlay work boggles the mind really. Imagine what this sort of work would cost you if you asked an American Bladesmith to do it for you? I am only sure that I would not be able to afford it, yet this cost me less than $200. Unbelievable really...
Even the guard has been worked along the edge and top, as you can see here in this picture, and some on the bottom as well though not as much as the top has been.
The bolster is flawless, there is no mark showing where the loop is closed like you get on some of the khuks. It is like he used a complete ring that was never coupled or welded. The marking on the bolster alone is astounding. There is so much detail here that I will be picking things out of this for years.
The other curious thing is the cho, I wonder if this using four slots instead of the typical cho here has any significance other than artistic content?
The Sarki even stepped up his work on this one. The leather is nice and tight, the stitching on the back is straight and clean and finally, the cover on the point of the scabbard not only is on there securely without a lot of extra laha oozing out everywhere but even it has been embellished!
There you are! I think it is safe to say the Himalayan Imports has really scored big by landing Rajkumar. With him in the stable, we can look forward to seeing some of those great, carved handles and engraved blades that really made the old Kamis stand out. I'd like to close with a few pix just showing the old verses the new Hanuman... both have a place in my collection and I am most leased to have them. I really am looking forward to seeing how Rajkumar interprets Garud and Biralo as well. Then I can have two sets of Zoomorphic Khukuries. One old school and one showing the way the new folks see their deities...
Seems to me that the old Hanuman was a little more approachable and friendly, maybe he was mischievous but he also looked a touch more like he was at least trying to be nice about it. Meanwhile, Hanuman 2010 makes no bones about it, he is all about mischief and if you are up to the game, then jump in! Have fun!
here is his mark...
Gone was the full tool kit of the old style Hanuman blade, replaced with an equally well carved set of a Karda and Chackmak. The little guys looked pretty cool and if these were made, as they are traditionally, by the apprentices in the shop, then we are sure in for the long haul's worth of artwork from this Kami's shop. In this case though it is my bet that Rajkumar himself made these little guys...
The blade and the bolster are unbelievably beautiful... the time this must have taken is hard to imagine for me. All the little hammer strikes and the time to engrave the lines and do the inlay work boggles the mind really. Imagine what this sort of work would cost you if you asked an American Bladesmith to do it for you? I am only sure that I would not be able to afford it, yet this cost me less than $200. Unbelievable really...
Even the guard has been worked along the edge and top, as you can see here in this picture, and some on the bottom as well though not as much as the top has been.
The bolster is flawless, there is no mark showing where the loop is closed like you get on some of the khuks. It is like he used a complete ring that was never coupled or welded. The marking on the bolster alone is astounding. There is so much detail here that I will be picking things out of this for years.
The other curious thing is the cho, I wonder if this using four slots instead of the typical cho here has any significance other than artistic content?
The Sarki even stepped up his work on this one. The leather is nice and tight, the stitching on the back is straight and clean and finally, the cover on the point of the scabbard not only is on there securely without a lot of extra laha oozing out everywhere but even it has been embellished!
There you are! I think it is safe to say the Himalayan Imports has really scored big by landing Rajkumar. With him in the stable, we can look forward to seeing some of those great, carved handles and engraved blades that really made the old Kamis stand out. I'd like to close with a few pix just showing the old verses the new Hanuman... both have a place in my collection and I am most leased to have them. I really am looking forward to seeing how Rajkumar interprets Garud and Biralo as well. Then I can have two sets of Zoomorphic Khukuries. One old school and one showing the way the new folks see their deities...
Seems to me that the old Hanuman was a little more approachable and friendly, maybe he was mischievous but he also looked a touch more like he was at least trying to be nice about it. Meanwhile, Hanuman 2010 makes no bones about it, he is all about mischief and if you are up to the game, then jump in! Have fun!
