Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

A. G. Maisey · 17th December 2007, 08:10 PM

Pak Ganja, you have addressed your question to Pak Boedhi, and it will interest me to see his response, however, please permit me to present my opinion as well. I emphasise that this is my opinion. I have never heard anybody else voice a similar opinion.

If we study closely the details of Jogja style blades what we find is a reflection of the Mataram style, most noticeable in the square blumbangan, but also able to be supported in the form of some other ricikan.

But with the Surakarta style, what we have is a reflection of the Majapahit style. In fact, not a "new" style, but a style pre-dating Mataram.

We are used to thinking of blades classified as Majapahit as being rather light ,but much of this fragility is the result of erosion. However, we do have examples of the direct descendants of the Majapahit form in the Banten, and the Bali forms, which are still in close to original condition.These Banten and Bali keris, although displaying ricikan which are broadly of similar style to the ricikan of Majapahit blades , are of much more substantial proportions than the Majapahit blades, primarily because they have not been subjected to ongoing erosive conditions.

The Surakarta form of keris most closely resembles the Banten and the Bali blade form. These two forms are continuations of the Majapahit form, and the Surakarta form similarly reflects a Majapahit style, just as the Jogjakarta blade form reflects a Mataram style.

The single blade feature that anchors the proportion of a blade is the blumbangan:- the form taken by the blumbangan dictates the proportions and placement of the other ricikan; get the form and proportion of the blumbangan wrong, and everything that follows will be wrong.

The blumbangan of the Surakarta blade form is a direct reflection of the Majapahit blumbangan; this same elongated blumbangan can be seen in the Banten blade form, and in the Bali blade form.

An inconsistent variation between Jogjakarta and Surakarta keris will be noted in the form of the ron dha/greneng , however, this is a superficial difference that has no effect on the form of the rest of the blade.

The Surakarta blade form is not a "new" style, rather it is a reflection of an older style of blade, a style that pre-dates Mataram.

17th December 2007, 08:10 PM	#40
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,697	Pak Ganja, you have addressed your question to Pak Boedhi, and it will interest me to see his response, however, please permit me to present my opinion as well. I emphasise that this is my opinion. I have never heard anybody else voice a similar opinion. If we study closely the details of Jogja style blades what we find is a reflection of the Mataram style, most noticeable in the square blumbangan, but also able to be supported in the form of some other ricikan. But with the Surakarta style, what we have is a reflection of the Majapahit style. In fact, not a "new" style, but a style pre-dating Mataram. We are used to thinking of blades classified as Majapahit as being rather light ,but much of this fragility is the result of erosion. However, we do have examples of the direct descendants of the Majapahit form in the Banten, and the Bali forms, which are still in close to original condition.These Banten and Bali keris, although displaying ricikan which are broadly of similar style to the ricikan of Majapahit blades , are of much more substantial proportions than the Majapahit blades, primarily because they have not been subjected to ongoing erosive conditions. The Surakarta form of keris most closely resembles the Banten and the Bali blade form. These two forms are continuations of the Majapahit form, and the Surakarta form similarly reflects a Majapahit style, just as the Jogjakarta blade form reflects a Mataram style. The single blade feature that anchors the proportion of a blade is the blumbangan:- the form taken by the blumbangan dictates the proportions and placement of the other ricikan; get the form and proportion of the blumbangan wrong, and everything that follows will be wrong. The blumbangan of the Surakarta blade form is a direct reflection of the Majapahit blumbangan; this same elongated blumbangan can be seen in the Banten blade form, and in the Bali blade form. An inconsistent variation between Jogjakarta and Surakarta keris will be noted in the form of the ron dha/greneng , however, this is a superficial difference that has no effect on the form of the rest of the blade. The Surakarta blade form is not a "new" style, rather it is a reflection of an older style of blade, a style that pre-dates Mataram.