[BigG]

I got this piece a while back. Whn it 1st came it had a missing base and the cross piece of the sheath had been broken off previously and was not well restored, giving it an lopsided appearance and made for a bad fit for the blade.

I send it off for restoration to a craftsman in the northern M'sian state of T'ganu. The craftsman was told to try an improve the appearance of the sheath so as to truly show off the excellent chatoyance and grains of the rare antique Kemuning wood. However, he was to keep all the knicks and scratches found alone. The result is as seen here. This piece is rare in that the entire sheath and hilt are made of kemuning wood (muraya paniculatta). I am unsure whether the Type of Kemuning wood used is of the variety known in the Peninsula as Kemuning Mas (Golden Kemuning) or of the Kemuning Raja (Royal Kemuning) variety. The base was also fixed wth Kemuning of a more recent vintage.

I have not treated the blade wth any warangan. But the pamor layers are clearly seen as is typical of the Bugis Palembang variety wth well arranged layers.. I like Bugis kerises & the Palembang variety is a very refine evolution of the root Bugis Form.

Comments would be appreciated.