76 BULLETIN 137, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



sword breaker and guard extension of metal that projects from the 

 wooden guard on the outside. Most of the similar devices consist of 

 a scrolled iron rod fastened to the side of the wooden guard at each 

 end; others consist of pieces of wire. The guard in the weapon just 

 described has a wire looped through two holes drilled through the 

 wooden guard at each end ; to this wire is attached a section of chain 

 armor 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) long. The guard chain overhangs 

 the hand gripping the sword handle and affords protection to the 

 fencer against glancing blows that have been deflected by the sword 

 blade itself. The chain links are of closely joined copper of a mesh 

 similar to that found on most of the coats of chain mail of early 

 Spanish or of more recent Moro manufacture. The links are so 

 closely joined as to appear to be welded, but the juncture points 

 may easily be pried apart. Each link is joined to four others, whiHi 

 is the commonly employed system of the medieval armorer. 



The kampilan is ordinarily considered a typical Moro Aveapon. In 

 the form in which this sword occurs in the Moro country this is 

 undoubtedly true. The term kampilan, however, is an old one and 

 indications are that the weapon formerly had a much wider distribu- 

 tion. In one of the northern Luzon Ibaloi songs recorded by Otto 

 Scheerer ^ the word kampilan occurs : 



Have met I the headman shouldering the kampilan 

 Inaspol ko's kapitan Anakbat ne kampilan 



Asked me where place of going mine 

 Imbagan to twai daguan ko 



Said I shall go down I to Ilokos 

 Inkuan ko manalung ak chi Idoko 

 Shall cut off he, said, he, the head mine. 

 Kompolin to kono e toktok ko 



The mixed Negrito population of the Province of Pangasinan, 

 Luzon, near Mangataren, also carry a knife called the "kampilan." 

 This knife has a wide curving crescentic blade. Negritos have been 

 observed in a dance called " baluk," in which the knife is displayed. 

 The two instances cited indicate that the kampilan is a weapon known 

 to the Nabaloi of Benguet Province and to the Negritos of Pangasi- 

 nan Province, northern Luzon. In neither case, however, is the 

 weapon at all similar to that of the Moro. 



Ki^s, Moro, Mindanao. — This steel blade is a rare and beautiful 

 ceremonial weapon employed by the Moro priests. The blade in out- 

 line shows the characteristic wavy excrescences. There are three of 

 these on each of the two cutting edges near the proximal or handle 

 section. The terminal section has straight lateral edges. Both the 

 inner and the outer lateral surfaces have four longitudinal grooved 



"> Ethnologial Survey, vol. 2, pt. 2, p. 149. 



