[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

Very, very good David.

Very good indeed.

On the fill of the mouth in a wrongko.

There are a number of reasons for this:-

1) a wrongko can be original, but worn, and no longer provides a good fit or protection for the blade, so the over-size mouth is filled, usually by an inlay of wood, sometimes done in a contrasting colour.

2) a wrongko might be of particularly good wood, and is intentionally used instead of new wood; the thought behind this is a little bit like marrying a woman who is of exceptional quality, rather than a virgin:- a virgin has her own virtue, but a beautiful or intelligent woman with several previous husbands can more than compensate for the limited virtues of a virgin.

3) economy:- re-use of old can be a lot more economical than creation of new.

In view of the quality of the wood in this wrongko I'm inclined to think that reason #2 is the applicable one.

In accordance with what I believe to be true, this keris is East Jawa, meaning that it could be found in Madura, as Madura is a part of East Jawa, but it is not necessarily identifiable as of specifically Madura origin.

Thanks Alan. Yes, i am also inclined towards your 2nd explanation. It seems to me that the fitted piece of wood is a bit too large to account for adjustments for wear and tear on an original wrongko. And the wood is nice...