Keris Selit

[A. G. Maisey]

Green, this is not a challenge, it is a question about something I do not know.

You, and many other people have the belief that Malay keris were"never stained", and certainly this is the case at the present time.

However, during my life time, and until now, I have had, and now have keris that were collected in old Malaya, before Malaya became Malaysia, and in Southern Thailand, Pattani. Some of these keris were collected circa 1920.

These keris display both stained finish, and unstained finish. I have two Pattani keris that have original stain from circa 1920.

I have just sold a Bugis keris collected in old Batavia (now Jakarta) in circa 1920, the blade was not stained when it was bought.

So do we know when and where this ethic of "no stain" arose?

It seems to me that throughout the "no stain" areas of today, that in the past it may have been a matter of personal preference as to whether a blade was stained or not.