A beautiful and rare knife which I obtained from a travelling salesman who is a "orang" Alor (Flores). He told me that this sword was from his grandfather. This sword has a wooden hilt with no ferrule and the goat hairs on top are missing. He is coming from the South of Alor, situated North of the island Timor from the village Musap The blade is mono steal so I think that the sword is pre 19th century. The original handle and sheath have a nice patination. The decoration on the handle is traditional and has a beautiful presence and quite similar with others I have found as reference. The carving on the picture is, compared with the ones I am familiar with, more refined and mystical. Most of the blades found on Alor or the surrounding islands came there by trade. The bunch of these blades, and especially the more older ones, were made on Solor and traded everywhere (a.o. by the VOC). That is why you find on these islands always so many swords with blades in the same shape. The blades of the swords within the region are made by Muslims so the inscriptions / engravings on the blade (see last photo for details) are likely a Muslim motive, the symbol of the Paradise Rivers flowing into the four cardinal directions. It appears often in the Muslim world on objects of utility. The scabbard, also looks very traditional the mouthpiece on the picture is broader than its height: rectangular. The foot is traditionally in the shape of something that looks somewhat like a 'fat comma' projecting to the edgeside. These swords are represented in collections (private as well as musea). Quite a few seem to be in "tribal art" collections and also most weapon collectors will only have one example of this type sword from the island of Alor. IoW a very rare piece but at the same time well preserved and beautiful decorated. The following specs: Blade length : 36cm Handle length: 18cm Weight: 457 grams Sheath length: 50cm Total length: 68cm A true beautiful piece of a rare Alor Klewang with no restorations / repairs and fully original which is slightly worn but an interesting blade. The blade has traces of wear and the hilt and blade decorations are of high quality. • The items will be carefully packaged and shipped within 1 working day with PostNL (including track & trace information) • Tracking will be updated on your Catawiki account once your package has been delivered. Check this regularly to prevent your package from being returned. • If a package is returned, the buyer is responsible for the shipping costs of the 2nd shipment. • Photos are part of the description and remain the property of Booker Trading. • The lot can be picked up by appointment in Zandvoort • If you have any questions about your package, please contact us via Catawiki's messaging service. We always respond quickly • Import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are the responsibility of the buyer. • We do not mark merchandise values below auction value or mark items as 'gifts'. International government regulations prohibit such behavior. • Please note that the images in our auctions are of the actual product and are NOT stock photos. All our photos are professionally taken in our studio. • We do not ship to Singapore