Early militia jian
An early Chinese militia jiàn most likely dating from the Ming.
Eight Banners
Administrative divisions under which all Manchu households were placed during the Qing dynasty.
Bāqí (八旗)
Administrative divisions under which all Manchu households were placed during the Qing dynasty.
Yútóudāo (魚頭刀)
A subtype of Chinese sabers with a peaked spine.
Chinese forked mace
A forked mace with cast ornament in the middle of the cross guard.
Pèidāo (佩刀)
Literally "waist-worn-saber".
Vintage Korean archery set
Comprising of a bow, arrows, and string sent to the U.S.A. in 1964 plus an associated quiver.
Large Southern Chinese saber
Built around a beautifully forged blade, in full polish, revealing a burl grain pattern.
An antique chángdāo
Its large blade is of ridged cross-section, inspired by the Japanese design.
Jiāgāng (加鋼)
A construction of edged weapons where a separate piece of high-carbon steel is forged into layers of milder steel.
Markings on Chinese swords
Most markings are found on military edged weapons, usually in the form of serial numbers and characters denoting a place or unit.
Tuánliàn jiàn (團練劍)
The Chinese militia jian. A simple, practical version of the Chinese straightsword.
Jiǎn (鐧)
A type of Chinese mace with a smooth rod.
Tiěbiān (鐵鞭)
Used to describe both flexible sectioned whips and heavy bar-maces.
Biān (鞭)
Literally: "whip". Describes actual whips but also iron chain weapons and rigid bar-maces.
Jiàn (劍)
The Chinese straightsword.
Dāo (刀)
Used to describe a wide variety of single-edged tools and weapons.
Early Chinese duǎndāo
With rare downward curving grip as seen on artwork of the 17th and 18th centuries.
Chinese bronze mace (tóngjiǎn)
With large dragon head collar piece.
Republican period fighting jian
A very nice and complete example, circa 1920's-30's.
Pī jiàn (鈚箭)
Chinese name for a class of broadhead arrows. (Alternative spelling using an archaic character).
Pī jiàn (披箭)
Chinese name for a class of broadhead arrows.
Silin dacungga kūwaran
An elite light unit under the Qing dynasty Eight Banners.
Jiànruìyíng (健銳營)
An elite unit under the Qing dynasty Eight Banners, comparable to today's special forces.
Niru
Manchu word for a class of broadhead arrows, a military "company", or captain.
A rare Qing bow
With translucent horn bellies glued on red pigment.
Hǔqiāngyíng（虎槍營）
An elite unit of Qing imperial guardsmen that accompanied the emperor into dangerous hunting grounds.
Tiger spear (Qing)
The "tiger spear" was a large hunting spear in use by the Qing dynasty Tiger spear division.
Hǔqiāng（虎槍）
A large hunting spear in use by the Qing dynasty Tiger spear division.
Baktong
Cantonese for báitóng.
Báitóng (白銅)
An alloy of copper, nickel, and zinc used among others for sword parts.
Tāotiè (饕餮)
Tāotiè (饕餮) is a mythical creature that is used as a decorative element.
Yànlíngdāo (雁翎刀)
A Chinese saber type that translates as "goose-feather saber".
Yànchìdāo (雁翅刀)
Chinese saber type with a gently curved blade and clipped tip.
Liǔyèdāo (柳葉刀)
A Chinese saber with a gentle curve.
Yànmáodāo (雁毛刀)
A Chinese saber type with a mainly straight blade that curves up at the tip. It literally means "goose-quill-saber".
Dāndāo (單刀)
Literally "single saber", it refers to any type of dāo used solely without shield or weapon in the other hand.
Beri
Manchu word for "bow".
Huāwéngāng (花文鋼)
A type of pattern welding known in English as twist-core.
A rare Jinchuan sword
A royal sword, probably from the Wasi kingdom in present-day Sichuan province.
Measurements of a Manchu bow
Made in the famous Changxing workshop in Chengdu, which as the subject of Tan Danjiong's (T'an Tan-Chiung) "Investigative Report on Bow and Arrow Manufacture in Chengdu"
A Chinese bow by Changxing
Rare extant work of a famous workshop in Chengdu.
A 17th century Manchu saber
A massive 17th century saber blade with markings in Manchu and Chinese.
Chinese crescent moon weapons
Unusual set of paired Chinese maces of good workmanship.
Niuweidao with Guangxu mark
Dated 1895. Large and heavy, a quality piece.
Niúwěidāo (牛尾刀)
A late form of Chinese saber with a pronounced widening at the tip.
Glossary of Chinese saber terminology
An overview of Chinese saber terminology as found in Chinese texts.
An exceptionally large dadao
With a wide clipped tip with notched upper edge.
Jianruiying (2); weapons and equipment
The Jianruiying was an elite division of the Qing dynasty military consisting of crack troops that were specially tra
Korean knife or eunjangdo
Description
A small Korean knife called eunjangdo, literally "silver knife".