Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - Does cleaning a keris hurt overall value or patina?

David · 15th January 2011, 02:45 PM

This is, of course, very good advice Alan, some i would support. Ultimately it is always the owner who must make themselves happy.
However, if we get back to the specific question that Dave posted, that would be "Does cleaning a keris hurt overall value or patina?" I do understand your reference to different markets quite well, but i would have to say that from what i have understood from the attitudes of the keris community in general (if we can ever generalize such a thing) is that as long as you don't also clean away patina or damage or over clean the blade in the process the answer is no, it will not hurt the value. And i believe whole-heartedly that a careful and well thought out cleaning does not hurt patina, but can in fact enhance it, so i find this part of Dave's question less subjective than the part about value. Frankly i'm not sure what the antique community at large thinks of this or, for that matter, what the appraisers at the Antiques Road Show would say about it all, but for me personally that is not the market that matters much in making these decisions.
Ultimate Dave is, of course, welcome to leave his keris "as is", but he did come to us and ask our opinions and he has most certainly received some.

15th January 2011, 02:45 PM	#19
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,026	This is, of course, very good advice Alan, some i would support. Ultimately it is always the owner who must make themselves happy. However, if we get back to the specific question that Dave posted, that would be "Does cleaning a keris hurt overall value or patina?" I do understand your reference to different markets quite well, but i would have to say that from what i have understood from the attitudes of the keris community in general (if we can ever generalize such a thing) is that as long as you don't also clean away patina or damage or over clean the blade in the process the answer is no, it will not hurt the value. And i believe whole-heartedly that a careful and well thought out cleaning does not hurt patina, but can in fact enhance it, so i find this part of Dave's question less subjective than the part about value. Frankly i'm not sure what the antique community at large thinks of this or, for that matter, what the appraisers at the Antiques Road Show would say about it all, but for me personally that is not the market that matters much in making these decisions. Ultimate Dave is, of course, welcome to leave his keris "as is", but he did come to us and ask our opinions and he has most certainly received some.