Just so Jean.
If we wish to find an answer to a question, we first need to produce a question that may assist in the production of an answer. Often it is more difficult to construct the question than it is to construct the answer.
Here below are a few questions that may assist in helping us to construct an answer to the question posed in post #1 of this thread.
1) Were the daggers carried by the common people keris, as we understand a keris to be?
2) Was the level of culture and society amongst the bulk of the populace of a level that refined weapons of any type might be supposed to be common?
3) Is it possible that the keris as we know it was only present amongst those entitled to weaponry within the kraton hierarchy?
4) Is it at all likely that the keris carried by members of kraton society would ever be seen by anybody except those who were close to these people?
5) . What form of keris is shown in monumental works of the Majapahit era, and in art works of the Majapahit era ?
6) Upon what examples of keris did the artists draw?
7) The Majapahit era lasted for over 200 years, it did not exist after about
1525.
The peak of migration from Jawa to Bali was in about 1512.
Majapahit was at its peak from about 1330 to 1389 --- the reign of
Hayam Wuruk.
Gajah Mada exercised effective control of Majapahit from about 1329
until 1364.
The decline of Majapahit commenced following the death of Hayam Wuruk.
In the period following the collapse of Majapahit, Jawa was in turmoil.
The form of the Modern Keris was fully developed by 1600.
8) During what period of time were social conditions conducive to the
incorporation of socio/religious iconography into the keris?
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