Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Mark · 3rd January 2006, 04:55 PM

Since no one seemed to be inclined to answer the basic question posed -- do the patterns on a kris have a particular meaning, and if so, what is it? -- I tried following Mabagani's suggestion to search past threads.

Unfortunately, so much has been written on this forum (and the old UBB forum) on kris that there are literally thousands of posts to wade through. I am pretty well trained in key-word searching (being a lawyer and all), but this is one bit of information that you can't easily zero in on with key word searching. I could not even find a thread specifically on the topic of these patterns, for instance.

Can't one of our numerous kris experts here take a minute to teach us ignorant ones?

Mark

PS: One thing that I remember being written by our Malay keris experts is that the pattern described as similar to that of a kukri may have had (at least in keris) a similar meaning -- i.e., that of the Shiva Linga or Shiva's Trident -- and that the little curl is indeed representative of an elephant's trunk. Perhaps a "keris guy" could comment on the similar features in the Moro kris?

3rd January 2006, 04:55 PM	#8
Mark Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 987	Too much information! Since no one seemed to be inclined to answer the basic question posed -- do the patterns on a kris have a particular meaning, and if so, what is it? -- I tried following Mabagani's suggestion to search past threads. Unfortunately, so much has been written on this forum (and the old UBB forum) on kris that there are literally thousands of posts to wade through. I am pretty well trained in key-word searching (being a lawyer and all), but this is one bit of information that you can't easily zero in on with key word searching. I could not even find a thread specifically on the topic of these patterns, for instance. Can't one of our numerous kris experts here take a minute to teach us ignorant ones? Mark PS: One thing that I remember being written by our Malay keris experts is that the pattern described as similar to that of a kukri may have had (at least in keris) a similar meaning -- i.e., that of the Shiva Linga or Shiva's Trident -- and that the little curl is indeed representative of an elephant's trunk. Perhaps a "keris guy" could comment on the similar features in the Moro kris?