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Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey
Detlef, I do not know the correct name for this wrongko. I did ask the previous owner if it had a special name, but he was very much a village man he did not speak nor understand Indonesian very well, and I could not speak his dialect. According to him it had been carved by his grandfather, but this could have been any "grandfather" back for a few generations.
As to the word "capil". This is a variation of "caping". Caping appears in Old Javanese, in Modern Javanese and either "caping" or "capil" -- I forget which -- appears in Balinese and also Indonesian. A "capil" is a hat, specifically a wide hat made out of palm leaves, the sort of triangular shaped one that farmers and becak drivers wear.
I have never heard this word used for a type of wrongko, but if we consider the leaf motif on this one, I can see why somebody might have decided that "capil" was a good name for it. Maybe they just forgot to mention this to the people who wear them --- or maybe my informant was not all that interested in keris terminology.
Yes, I think it must qualify as folk art.
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Like Detlef, I also know the name capil for this type of warangka, I learned it from a well-known kris collector & seller from Surabaya. However this specimen is peculiar because of the carved gambar. Given the history of the kris, I wonder if the blade deserves to be kept confidential, I respect Alan' decision but this is not my philosophy as you know unless in very special cases.
I am often stumbling across kris auctions where the blade is not shown and this irritates me very much, but it is due to the ignorance of the auctioneers who believe that the value of a kris mainly lies in its clothes...
Regards