wakizashi and african sword, please help ID

[scotchleaf]

Hi: can anyone tell me anything about the swords pictured? Both were inherited.

My great aunt was married to a Swede during WWII, and lived in Japan for part of the war. After the war she came back to Japan in 1945-48 and,
to make a long story short, was given the wakizashi by a friend. I took it to the ‘07 blade show and found a Japanese gentleman who was selling
Japanese swords. He took it apart and found that it was unsigned. He dated it to the late 17th century. It does have a Hamon, but it is nearly
invisible because, like a genius, as a teenager I put wax on the blade to preserve it. Anyone know how to remove the wax without damage? I am
not responsible for the scratches.


He said the Tsuba was inappropriate - was made for a katana.

I know even less about the African sword - it seems not to have been intended for use because of the small handle. It is decorated with real
teeth which I was told came from a pig.

Thanks very much for any insights you can provide…

also, check out this battle scene: a japanese screen

 

[Tim-Gabz]

This is going to be interesting. Mostly African Swords are associated with Arabic and Muslim North Africa. Pigs teeth are definitely do not fit in this area. Can't identify the handle horn, Africa, I stand to be corrected, only has single prong horns.

If the handle is other bone material, my guess would be to go with Animist West Africa.

 

[scotchleaf]

I really don't know where the "african" sword comes from. I know my relations visited South Africa and what was then known as Rhodesia. Now that whole generation is gone. Now that you mention it, the teeth, if they are from a pig, would definitely not be used by an Islamic artisan. Also, the blade appears to be iron, and crude. It is my understanding that the Arab swordsmiths were very skilled.

 

[Tim-Gabz]

Africa is a huge continent Swords didn't exist much below the Equator. The Assegai and spear were about it. The Bow and arrow were limited to the Bushman.

 

[cerulean]

The "African" sword looks similar to a Mandau (or Parang Ilang), except for the blade shape. It's extremely crude though... I'm not sure if it's from Borneo. Here's some more info on Dayak parangs.

Searching around the net, I found some pics of Mandaus from Irian Jaya that look like a closer match. Here's one example, and another. There was also a discussion about them on the Ethnographic Weapons forum here.

 

[royke]

The "African" sword appears to be a "Mandau" used by the Dayak tribe as Cerulean says.

 

[scotchleaf]

I agree that the "African" sword definitly appears to be a Mandau from Irian Jaya

Thanks very much

 

[Moto7451]

Depending on the wax used, a dry lint free rag may be your best bet. A little isopropyl alcohol might also help. Since it's an antique, the harshest solvent I would go with is kerosene (i.e. Never-Dull wadding). Don't use anything like Brasso (which will leave it's own residue in the form of a gap filling compound (meant to increase the shine)).

That said, if you're not planning on doing anything with the sword at the moment, leave the wax on or replace it with Renaissance Wax (used by museums to preserve artifacts). Don't bother keeping it oiled with Clove/Choji oil. It's expensive, can tint the blade depending on the composition of the oil, and better solutions exist for long and short term storage. Just make sure anything you put on the blade is Acid free.