Keris Hilt for comment

[mykeris]

I saw this strange hilt fixed to a keris on ebay (auction ended) :Item number: 200266557412 Is this hilt common? Do anybody know what motif the hilt is? Regards, TQ

[Rick]

There is a Javanese style hilt of similar construction (stacked spheres) could this be a regional variation ?

[A. G. Maisey]

This is interesting.

I first saw the Javanese style one on an old keris in a collection that had been bequeathed to the musium in the Mangkunegaraan in Solo. I later met an old m'ranggi who told me that the name of the style was Imam Bonjol, and that he had carved this style a few times before WWII.

Imam Bonjol was a 19th century hero in the struggle against Dutch colonialism.

He was from Sumatera.

I could never work out how a Javanese style hilt could finish up with the name of a Sumatran hero.

It looks to me as if the Javanese hilt is an adaptation of the Bugis type hilt we see in the ebay entry.

[mykeris]

Thanks Rick, Maisey, its really interesting. Could it be another version of Kerdas form? :)