Old daggers I found 30 years ago in loft

[Wayne E Edge]

Not sure there is a specific forum for this so tried here. I found these 30 years ago and just came across them again today. Anybody got any ideas what they are or from where?

Cheers

[anonymous-user]

i had the bottom knife mass produced by India.

[Wayne E Edge]

That makes sense because it has India on the blade

[cloggy]

The top one is a 'kris' from Indonesia.

[psi310398]

The bottom one is a Gurkha's kukri.

[Moonhawk]

Top right looks like the Vorpal blade from Dungeon Master.....good for killing ghosts.

[davhill]

I understand the Gurkas have a code: never draw the kukri unless it is to be used in anger.

[psi310398]

davhill said:

I understand the Gurkas have a code: never draw the kukri unless it is to be used in anger.

I thought it was more aggressive than that - do not sheath your kukri until you have drawn blood. However, given that it is widely used as a farm knife, I'm not sure how accurate either statement is.

This laconic extract from a WWII engagement report suggests how effective it is, though: "Enemy losses: ten killed, ours nil. Ammunition expenditure nil."

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

psi310398 said:

The bottom one is a Gurkha's kukri.

Cheap Indian knock off more like!

[psi310398]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

Cheap Indian knock off more like!

Probably not Army issue (either Indian or British) but, given that every household in Nepal and quite a lot in Northern India have at least one for daily use as a tool, I imagine that there are quite a lot of places knocking them out...

[Wayne E Edge]

So not much chance if becoming a millionaire on the back of it?

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

It certainly looks to be a cheap copy and it's missing the Karda (small utility blade) and the Chakmak (sharpening tool).

The Kukris issuerd to the Gurkhas in the British Army (The 'Old Number One') are not particularly impressive, being poorly balanced and made from railway steel. I was told by an ex-Gurkha RSM (who makes kukris) in Kathmandu that 'Johnny Gurka' buys his own kukri, generally opting for the slightly longer and slightly narrower bladed 'Sirupate' ('slender leaf') which have a better balance and which are made from superior steel.

I have 2 Sirupates sitting on my TV stand that I bought from said ex-RSM back in the early '90s.

[anonymous-user]

my old one was blunter than a blunt thing.