Hi!

[spooks]

Hi!

I'm new and I'm glad to find this forum since theres alot of nice cool discussions regarding arms and armories. To be specific, I'm very much into kerises, not surprising since i'm a Malay myself but the knowledge and expertise shown by some of the non-malays here puts me to shame! I've always been interested in them since I'm a kid haha i remember bugging my parents then that I want my own keris but of course, my parents didnt give in (and rightly so). But I'm all grown up now (22...yahoo!) and already i'm planning to buy a keris later this year as my own birthday present haa! Insya-Allah.

Ok anyway, I'm looking for books regarding the history and usage of kerises throughout the past centuries in the Malay Archipelago. I know there are a couple good online websites that deals with them but I love the feeling of having a nice great informative book you can put on your lap and read, know what i mean? ;) So I'll appreciate it if anyone can kindly refer me to some, especially those you can order online reliably.

My thanks in advance!

Peace out.

[Raja Muda]

Salam pendekar!
A fairly concise and good introduction to the world of keris would be Edward Frey's The Kris:Msytic Weapon of the Malay World, published by Oxford Univ Press.
Fairly uncluttered language and facts, with a good selection of coloured pictures. Fairly available in all good bookstores so you might want to try Borders or the Kinokuniya at Takashimaya.
For something in Bahasa Indonesia, there's the Ensiklopedia Keris by almarhum Bambang Hasrinokusumo. I think it's available online or at most good stores in Jakarta. :)

[Alam Shah]

Hi spooks, welcome. Nice to see another Singaporean keris lover (there are quite a handful here, by the way). :)
The books recommended by Raja Muda, The Kris: Mystic Weapon of the Malay World, is a good book. Great for beginners. I bought mine at www.amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/) (USD 15.95). Be sure to get the 3rd Edition which contains a good Archives section.

For Ensiklopedi Keris by Bambang Harsrinuksmo, I bought mine in Batam, Toko Gramedia at S$ 55.00. On the internet, you can get it from eBay or elsewhere but it will cost more.

For more books, see this thread.
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=203&page=1&pp=30

Some of it you can loan from the National Library.
Happy reading. ;)

[rasdan]

Hi Spooks,

Welcome. Happy hunting for kerisses and wish u the best of luck. :)

[spooks]

thanks for the warm welcome and info, i'm gonna look it up at amazon.com :)
oh yah that keris that is in the thread you provided...wow! it made me go gugugaga! so beautiful...

anyway, to raja muda...pendekar? takdelah, nak bertanding dengan hang kebun pun belum tahu lagi :p