I am grateful to Timo for analyzing my line of thinking on possible sword fighting reasons for the reverse handle. As an armchair (at one time, standing) fencer myself, it is a good reminder to me and my ilk how little we know of the
actual historical use of these weapons, and how important that might (or might not) be in understanding their form.
Is it known whether kris-bearing fighters carried a knife or other weapon in their offhand?
Rick's thought about a reversed hilt as a symbol of peace reminded me of something I read about an Indonesian weapon (can't remember keris or badik or something else with a prominent directional hilt). One would typically wear the weapon with the hilt facing the "wrong way". In a dispute, rotating the weapon in one's sash was a way of escalating the dispute by suggesting imminent violence without actually drawing the weapon.
To bolster Rick's thought, if we assume most days were peaceful, and if following Indonesian custom, the well-decorated (prestigious) side of the scabbard would not be visible if the entire weapon were reversed. Solution: just reverse the hilt and one can demonstrate both peaceful intent and display the decorated side of the scabbard. Evidence for this theory might be a relative disparity in the numbers of reversed handles found on prestigious kris versus more ordinary kris whose primary purpose was clearly fighting, not display of wealth.
Anyway, it's just a thought from an armchair theorist. Thank you everyone for your keen observations.
Dave A.