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Old 15th July 2019, 11:07 PM   #11
A. G. Maisey
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Join Date: May 2006
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In respect of Sirek's yellow keris, this is a Javanese presentation.The use of a tortoiseshell veneer is something that is outside the mainstream, but there are a lot of Javanese keris that are outside the mainstream, again, I'd probably give this as East Jawa. Actually, I'd expect a blewah with a wide open face on this gandar, that's what I've usually seen with this sort of setup.

Looking very closely at the finish of this wrongko, and the mating of atasan/gambar to gandar, is there any possibility that this wrongko might be a marriage?

Yes, it is a keris that would be wearable in Jawa, and not really so much in Bali, but there are a couple of things I'm uncomfortable with, and I cannot really form a solid opinion from a photo.

Edit

The more I look at this yellow keris, the more I think it is is a marriage.

A kebo blade usually has the sorsoran accomodated in the atasan, the sorsoran on this keris looks as if it willl penetrate the top of the gandar, the atrasan itself is a narrow from top to bottom, within Javanese parameters, but still, a bit too narrow for this keris. The gandar extends beyond its natural boundaries and is not a tight fit to the atasan, the sirah cecak stands a whisker proud, exactly what we would expect if the fear was that the segrek might cut through the side of the gandar.

I'd be happier to comment with this keris in my hand, but my tentative opinion is that this keris is a marriage, and a marriage that has been done by a relatively unskilled person. It might have been done in Jawa, in a rural area this would pass as a pretty decent sort of keris, but it might equally have been done a long way from Jawa.

Last edited by A. G. Maisey; 15th July 2019 at 11:28 PM.
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