Thread: javanese keris
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Old 7th July 2005, 02:57 PM   #14
nechesh
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Thanks Marto. What you say about tangguh has been stated numerous times in the past, but it seems to be our very human trait to attempt to put a name and a catagory to everything regardless of our technical ability to do so with accurate certainty. As you say, tangguh of VERY FEW keris are easily identifiable in photographs, and i believe mhm27's keris is no exception. Kingdom styles have a tendency to bleed into one another. Often syles are copied in later kingdoms. Materials are very important in IDs so the weight of the blade in hand is an important factor as is the feel of the pamor, qualities a photograph can never convey. There is also a more esorteric feel to the blade which cannot be grasped through photos alone. Then keris are dressed and redressed and redressed again, so clues beyond the blade itself often yield little valuable info about origin. The process of tangguh is often misused and misunderstood.
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