This kukri is the second of two brought to the UK at the end of WW2 by Walter James “Bill” Tyrrell, who served as a rigger with 615 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force. 615 Squadron served in India & Burma from 1941 through to the end of the war.
The 300mm hollow ground blade has a thick, ridged spine that tapers to a hatchet point. The blade is in good condition with a very shallow forging fault below the spine on one side. This does not affect the utility or integrity of the blade and has been there since the blade was made. The very sharp blade is decorated on both sides with chiselled lines and dots below the spine.
The Cho at the base of the blade serves to stop blood, sap or other fluids from running onto the handle and making it slippery. The Cho is also believed to be a symbolic representation of a cows’ foot, a sacred animal to all Hindus.
The bone hilt has a steel bolster. The grip flares to a broad oval at the base allowing the user a very good grip. The grip has some mild wear and is in overall good condition. The blade is firm in the hilt.
The wooden, leather covered scabbard is in good condition and is complete with its the Karda and Chakmak. The seam along the back edge of the scabbard has parted slightly. The glue that held the two wooden halves of the scabbard together has come unstuck and can be re-glued.
This is a good Northern Indian Kukri dating to the first half of the 20th Century and brought back to the UK after World War 2.
