Keris without a sheath...please help identify?

A. G. Maisey · 30th March 2022, 10:54 PM

My immediate impression of this keris is that it is a montage, ie, a keris that has been put together by a previous owner using unrelated parts.

The hilt does look to be ivory, it also looks as if it has lost some sort of infill from the top of the head, possibly another piece of ivory, or maybe a gemstone. I think I'd be inclined to use a cabochon cut moonstone to fill this hole. The carving of the hilt appears to be quite skilled. My personal approach would be to dismount the hilt and mount on a stand as a display piece. I would also hand-rub a few drops of baby oil into it. It is a nice hilt.

The pendongkok is not a good mating for this hilt. I'm guessing that it is brass, the workmanship does not seem to support a nomination for silver gilt nor any grade of gold. This might be best placed into the spare parts box.

The blade is not empu made, it appears to be competently made, very likely the work of a skilled pande. I would be inclined to closely examine, using magnification, the welding to see if there are any flaws in the joints --- not that this is all that important, but if the welding were to be found to be flawless it would re-enforce my initial impression of competence on the part of the maker.

I am not prepared to classify this blade in tangguh terms based upon what I can see in the photos. There are indications of Tuban, also of Southern Sumatera, and maybe even a couple of other places. The tikel alis looks to be the old style, continuing through to the front of the gandhik, this could be read as an indicator of age, or it might simply mean that it was produced in some place out of the mainstream. This tikel alis and blumbangan are poorly executed, which causes me to think in terms of "out of the mainstream". As a ballpark age, I'd be inclined to date it as pre-1850.

The gonjo might not be original. From the photos I cannot form a supportable opinion. To be at all certain I would need it in my hand, and I would perhaps need to examine under magnification.

If this keris were in my possession I would tidy up the gonjo fitting, replace the hilt with an old, decent quality Javanese planar hilt & mendak, not Jogja, and fit to a new wrongko. I am not nominating Javanese dress because I think it is Javanese, but because Javanese dress is comparatively easy to come by and is lower priced than the alternatives.

Its really not a bad blade, even if it was made as a weapon & item of commerce, it deserves to be put into a condition that will see it preserved into the future.

30th March 2022, 10:54 PM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,994	My immediate impression of this keris is that it is a montage, ie, a keris that has been put together by a previous owner using unrelated parts. The hilt does look to be ivory, it also looks as if it has lost some sort of infill from the top of the head, possibly another piece of ivory, or maybe a gemstone. I think I'd be inclined to use a cabochon cut moonstone to fill this hole. The carving of the hilt appears to be quite skilled. My personal approach would be to dismount the hilt and mount on a stand as a display piece. I would also hand-rub a few drops of baby oil into it. It is a nice hilt. The pendongkok is not a good mating for this hilt. I'm guessing that it is brass, the workmanship does not seem to support a nomination for silver gilt nor any grade of gold. This might be best placed into the spare parts box. The blade is not empu made, it appears to be competently made, very likely the work of a skilled pande. I would be inclined to closely examine, using magnification, the welding to see if there are any flaws in the joints --- not that this is all that important, but if the welding were to be found to be flawless it would re-enforce my initial impression of competence on the part of the maker. I am not prepared to classify this blade in tangguh terms based upon what I can see in the photos. There are indications of Tuban, also of Southern Sumatera, and maybe even a couple of other places. The tikel alis looks to be the old style, continuing through to the front of the gandhik, this could be read as an indicator of age, or it might simply mean that it was produced in some place out of the mainstream. This tikel alis and blumbangan are poorly executed, which causes me to think in terms of "out of the mainstream". As a ballpark age, I'd be inclined to date it as pre-1850. The gonjo might not be original. From the photos I cannot form a supportable opinion. To be at all certain I would need it in my hand, and I would perhaps need to examine under magnification. If this keris were in my possession I would tidy up the gonjo fitting, replace the hilt with an old, decent quality Javanese planar hilt & mendak, not Jogja, and fit to a new wrongko. I am not nominating Javanese dress because I think it is Javanese, but because Javanese dress is comparatively easy to come by and is lower priced than the alternatives. Its really not a bad blade, even if it was made as a weapon & item of commerce, it deserves to be put into a condition that will see it preserved into the future.