Cleveland Museum of Art

Sword (Barong)

Date

before 1916

Medium

Blade: metal; handle: metal with silver foil and repoussé work; pommel: ivory and carabao horn

Culture

Philippines, Mindanao, Sulu Archipelago

Department

Oceania

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This sword has a broad, leaf-shaped blade characteristic of the Sulu Archipelago. Its profile suggests it was used for powerful cut-and-slash fighting. The hilt terminates in an exceptionally long ivory cockatoo ( kakatua ) pommel, carved with delicate okir scrollwork. This was an object of authority, status, and ceremonial presence within Tausug culture, probably owned by a member of the datu ruling class. The ovular shape on the ivory pommel’s base marks where the nerve of the tooth was.

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