An Odd Ensemble (for me)
 

Since we have been looking at some more unusual keris and keris-like objects (KLO) recently i would be interested in hearing what our keris enthusiasts think about this one. Supposedly it belongs to the Sultan of Terengganu, but is currently on museum display as seen in this photo. I don't know much more about it nor do i have any more photos. Frankly i have never seen anything like it, from the unusually adorned blade to the hidden tombak in the sheath tip. :shrug:

The scabbard is in Palembang style, so it may be a 2 in 1 gift (keris & tombak) from the Sultan of Palembang to the Sultan of Terengganu?
Regards

Certainly Sumatra, the hulu is that of Knives from the region too, see below.

The entire object is most interesting and unusual, despite the unorthodox form, I like it. Such attention to detail through out, down to a little gold sprung clip to keep the base attached.

Gavin

Yes Jean, certainly the sheath is a Palembang design. Your suggestion is certainly possible.
Thanks for this comparison hilt. I was having trouble making it out from that one photo. Looks like it might be a makara then. :shrug: :)

Jean, I really enjoyed your comment, thanks! :)

Very interesting indeed! Thank you for sharing the photo!

Now seeing this one, I am starting to think that my carved one might not be as "exotic" after all. :cool:

I might have liked this one if it weren't the "jewels" on the blade.

But keep it in mind that almost in every museum you will go, you will find a few examples of very exotic hybrid weapons that even the most experienced curators will find difficult to classify.

Hi Gavin and David,
The pics of the hilts are not very clear but I am not sure that they depict the same figure, the one from Gavin with the protruding nose depicts a popular hero from Bali/ Lombok area? but I forgot his name.
Best regards
Jean

I believe this hilt depicts the character Umarmaya. As far as I know, this is a panakawan character in Lombok. On this site (German), he's listed as a character in the repertoire of Wayang Sasak (ethnic group on Lombok).

Thanks for your imput. Given the placement of this item it would seem strange to have a culturally mixed ensemble like that, but who knows. I would love to see some better images of this hilt. :shrug:

I believe that when we get a profile photo of this hilt it will be found that it is derived from a wayang character, and that it has a big nose. In fact, we can just about see this now, but nothing more.

All kasar (rough, crude) characters in the wayang have big noses.

If we are to try to specifically identify the character shown in this hilt we need at the very least a clear profile photo.

Thank you Yuuzan.
Yes, although the pic is not very clear I believe that the hilt shown by Gavin depicts Umarmaya or Umar Maye as he has very distinctive features. He seems to be a very popular character in Lombok but very little is published about him. We already discussed it in September 2008 without much success.
Gavin, are you sure that your dagger is from Sumatra?
Regards :)

Gavin, are you sure that your dagger is from Sumatra?
Regards :)[/QUOTE]

Yes, I agree with Jean.
In fact the photo doesn't show much. From what we can see, the scabbard seems Madurese and the hilt could be Cirebon. A photo of the blade would help.

Yes, I agree with Jean.
In fact the photo doesn't show much. From what we can see, the scabbard seems Madurese and the hilt could be Cirebon. A photo of the blade would help.[/QUOTE]
Just to be clear Gio, you are talking about Gavin's ensemble, not the original one, correct?