Description:

Dagger knife "sewar"
Indonesia, Sumatra Central to North, (Medan?), 19th century, blade possibly older
L. 32,7 cm
Steel, wood, ivory, non-ferrous metal. A sewar, a dagger-knife form that can be assigned to the Central to North Sumatra region in this form. The handle, sheath mouthpiece and sheath foot are carved from ivory; the handle has the shape of a stylised cockatoo head. The ivory has a very beautiful honey-coloured patina. The style of the handle and the scabbard mouthpiece points (with reservations) to Medan in North Sumatra. The carving is professionally executed. The wedge-shaped, sharply honed blade is curved inwards, the tip lies in the line of the blade. The protruding, organically rounded scabbard mouthpiece with deeply cut foliage (originally based on a stylised makkara, a dragon-like sea monster) is called cangge. The scabbard is made of tayuman wood (Cassia Laevigata), it is held together with metal bands.
From an old German private collection, collected since the 1950s - The EU sales licence for this lot is available - This lot cannot be exported out of the European Union

The sewar (siwai) is widespread throughout the Sumatran-Malayan coastal area;sten area and in the Padang highlands as well as in the Bandjar district area (Southern Borneo) and on the Malay Peninsula. Sewar were worn by both women and men. Their lightness and organic shape makes them very comfortable to wear in everyday life, and they are also useful as everyday cutting tools. They were feared weapons whose delicacy belies their efficiency. They were used in certain forms of duels and as weapons of self-defence, especially by the Minangkabau and Acehnese. The sewar can be described as the "national knife" of the Minangkabau. The sharp edges of these combat knives could cause terrible injuries with the upward, drawn stabs, which were usually aimed at the abdomen, armpits or neck. The sheaths were used for parrying - hence the sometimes very wide mouthpiece. Among the Minangkabau, the sewar (there: sewah) is a central utensil in the traditional dance Tari Sewah, in which movements of the pancak silat, the traditional martial art, are practised (Tarian Pancak). In the case of the Tänzen, the ducking or undercutting of longer enemy weapons (e.g. swords, bayonets, etc.) is also explicitly practised, which compensates for the shorter range and has often caused unpleasant surprises for the latter in clashes with Europeans - blade sharpened

Dolchmesser "sewar"
Indonesien, Sumatra Zentral- bis Nord-, (Medan?), 19. Jh., Klinge evtl. älter
L. 32,7 cm
Stahl, Holz, Elfenbein, Buntmetall. Ein sewar, eine Dolchmesser-Form, die in dieser Form dem Großraum Mittel- bis Nordsumatra zugewiesen werden kann. Griff, Scheidenmundstück und Scheidenfuß sind aus Elfenbein geschnitzt; der Griff hat die Form eines stilisierten Kakadu-Kopfes. Das Elfenbein hat eine sehr schöne honigfarbene Patina. Der Stil des Griffes und des Scheidenmundstückes deutet (mit Vorbehalt) auf Medan in Nord-Sumatra hin. Die Schnitzarbeit ist professionell ausgeführt. Die keilförmig zugeschliffene, scharf geätzte Rückenklinge ist einwärtsgebogen, die Spitze liegt in der Rückenlinie. Das ausladende, organisch gerundete Scheidenmundstück mit tiefgeschnittenem Blattwerk (ursprünglich zurückgehend auf einen stilisierten makkara, ein drachenartiges Seeungeheuer) heißt cangge. Die Scheide ist aus tayuman Holz (Cassia Laevigata), sie ist mit Metallbändern zusammengehalten.
Aus einer alten deutschen Privatsammlung, seit den 1950er Jahren gesammelt - Die EU-Verkaufsgenehmigung für dieses Lot liegt vor - Für dieses Lot ist eine Ausfuhr/Versand außerhalb der Europäischen Union nicht möglich.

Der sewar (siwai) ist im gesamten sumatranisch-malaiischen Küstengebiet und im padang’schen Hochland sowie im Bandjar-Distrikt Gebiet (Südborneo) und auf der malaiischen Halbinsel verbreitet. Sewar wurden genauso von Frauen wie von Männern getragen. Ihre Leichtigkeit und organische Form macht das Tragen im Alltag sehr komfortabel, und sie sind zudem auch als Alltags-Schneidwerkzeuge nützlich. Sie waren gefürchtet

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Export to countries outside the EU are subject to the restrictions of the UNESCO convention from 1970 and the European Agreement for the Protection of Cultural Heritage from 1993. Moreover, the cites regulations are applicable. Objects with materials such as ivory or tortoise shell require a permission for export into countries outside the EU contract area due to cites regulations. We point out that such a permission is usually not given. For exports within the EU the Act to Protect German Cultural Property against Removal (Kulturgutschutzgesetz) has been in force since 6th August 2016.


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October 1, 2025 10:00 AM CEST
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20 € 179 € 10 €
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300 € 359 € 30 €
360 € 399 € 40 €
400 € 899 € 50 €
900 € 999 € 100 €
1.000 € 1.999 € 100 €
2.000 € 2.999 € 200 €
3.000 € 3.599 € 300 €
3.600 € 3.999 € 400 €
4.000 € 9.999 € 500 €
10.000 € 19.999 € 1.000 €
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30.000 € 35.999 € 3.000 €
36.000 € 39.999 € 4.000 €
40.000 € 99.999 € 5.000 €
100.000 € 199.999 € 10.000 €
200.000 € + 20.000 €