Bugis Keris For Comment

BluErf · 8th February 2007, 02:16 PM

The use of horn for the buah pinang may not be always for repair. Usually, such hilts come from Sumatra, and I've not seen a similar combination in Malaysian hilts. I have seen a few such hilts with the horn carved as the outer ring, fixed to the inner ring, which is the wood from the hilt. The wood is not cracked or broken. It may be a matter of aesthetics.

BluErf · 8th February 2007, 02:31 PM

Here's the hilt from my collection. It used to be on a giant Sumatran Bugis sepokal which it was separated from. I don't know where the keris is. I just bought the hilt because it looked very good. Notice in the 2nd shot that the wood forms the inner ring on which the outer ring of horn is affixed.

Alam Shah · 8th February 2007, 03:41 PM

David, it make a nice two-toned piece hilt.

Alan, agreed that most likely its a repair. In most cases, the hilt have some significant value or reason to keep it, (be it mystical or sentimental).

Kai Wee, I have a hilt in my collection with similar works.

Mine was a salvaged piece. The sheath is a replacement.

http://alamshah.fotopic.net/p32019268.html

Lew · 8th February 2007, 03:45 PM

I think then the horn is original to the hilt and not a repair. Thanks guys

Lew

Alam Shah · 8th February 2007, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LOUIEBLADES

I think then the horn is original to the hilt and not a repair. Thanks guys

Lew

Can we see a picture from the base up, like Kai Wee's picture?

BluErf · 8th February 2007, 04:22 PM

If the horn buah pinang are repairs, I have one question - why repair with horn and not using similar wood?

A. G. Maisey · 8th February 2007, 08:40 PM

Yes, certainly it could be original. If you are not there watching at the time it is done, anything is possible.

However, it is a recognised method of repair, and the way in which it is done can vary from craftsman to craftsman, and in accordance with the nature of the defect. It is not exclusive to this style of handle, but can be found on other handles as well, for example, Javanese handles.

The reason horn is used rather than wood is twofold:- firstly, it is an artistic principle that when you must disguise or eliminate a flaw, one of the most effective ways to do so is to make a virtue of that flaw, thus, when you remove the checked wood, you do not try to blend and hide, you highlight the replacement as a feature.

The second reason is that horn is stronger and more stable than wood. If you cut a selut from a piece of wood it is very probable that the replacement wood will crack and split in a very short period of time. With horn you are actually improving the handle, both in strength, and in beauty.

The reasons that this repair is done are that it is much, much cheaper to make a selut than it is to make a new handle, additionally, if a handle has a particularly nice grain, why would anybody get rid of it, if it can be effectively repaired?

When this part of a handle checks, the opening of the crack on the outside of the handle is very much wider than it is on the inside, next to the hole for the pesi, in fact, sometimes by the time the crack gets down to the pesi hole, it is virtually non-existant.

Another method of repair for these cracks is to bind this part of the handle with silver or copper plaited wire. You most often see this on an ivory handle.

I have had a very large number of handles like this through my hands, and I myself have commissioned this repair to be done many times. As I write I am looking at a badly cracked Bugis handle that will have the same repair done to it in a few weeks time, provided I can get a large enough piece of solid black horn, which is not always that easy in Central Jawa these days.

I agree that there is a possibility that Lew's handle was like this from the day it was made. However, in my experience this is a very slight possibility. The probability is that the horn is a repair.

8th February 2007, 02:31 PM	#2
BluErf Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,180	Here's the hilt from my collection. It used to be on a giant Sumatran Bugis sepokal which it was separated from. I don't know where the keris is. I just bought the hilt because it looked very good. Notice in the 2nd shot that the wood forms the inner ring on which the outer ring of horn is affixed. Attached Images

8th February 2007, 03:41 PM	#3
Alam Shah Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,248	A similar bugis hilt with horn base David, it make a nice two-toned piece hilt. Alan, agreed that most likely its a repair. In most cases, the hilt have some significant value or reason to keep it, (be it mystical or sentimental). Kai Wee, I have a hilt in my collection with similar works. Mine was a salvaged piece. The sheath is a replacement. http://alamshah.fotopic.net/p32019268.html Last edited by Alam Shah; 8th February 2007 at 04:05 PM.

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8th February 2007, 02:16 PM	#1
BluErf Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,180	The use of horn for the buah pinang may not be always for repair. Usually, such hilts come from Sumatra, and I've not seen a similar combination in Malaysian hilts. I have seen a few such hilts with the horn carved as the outer ring, fixed to the inner ring, which is the wood from the hilt. The wood is not cracked or broken. It may be a matter of aesthetics.

8th February 2007, 03:45 PM	#4
Lew (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: East Coast USA Posts: 3,191	I think then the horn is original to the hilt and not a repair. Thanks guys Lew

8th February 2007, 04:22 PM	#6
BluErf Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,180	If the horn buah pinang are repairs, I have one question - why repair with horn and not using similar wood?

8th February 2007, 08:40 PM	#7
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,019	Yes, certainly it could be original. If you are not there watching at the time it is done, anything is possible. However, it is a recognised method of repair, and the way in which it is done can vary from craftsman to craftsman, and in accordance with the nature of the defect. It is not exclusive to this style of handle, but can be found on other handles as well, for example, Javanese handles. The reason horn is used rather than wood is twofold:- firstly, it is an artistic principle that when you must disguise or eliminate a flaw, one of the most effective ways to do so is to make a virtue of that flaw, thus, when you remove the checked wood, you do not try to blend and hide, you highlight the replacement as a feature. The second reason is that horn is stronger and more stable than wood. If you cut a selut from a piece of wood it is very probable that the replacement wood will crack and split in a very short period of time. With horn you are actually improving the handle, both in strength, and in beauty. The reasons that this repair is done are that it is much, much cheaper to make a selut than it is to make a new handle, additionally, if a handle has a particularly nice grain, why would anybody get rid of it, if it can be effectively repaired? When this part of a handle checks, the opening of the crack on the outside of the handle is very much wider than it is on the inside, next to the hole for the pesi, in fact, sometimes by the time the crack gets down to the pesi hole, it is virtually non-existant. Another method of repair for these cracks is to bind this part of the handle with silver or copper plaited wire. You most often see this on an ivory handle. I have had a very large number of handles like this through my hands, and I myself have commissioned this repair to be done many times. As I write I am looking at a badly cracked Bugis handle that will have the same repair done to it in a few weeks time, provided I can get a large enough piece of solid black horn, which is not always that easy in Central Jawa these days. I agree that there is a possibility that Lew's handle was like this from the day it was made. However, in my experience this is a very slight possibility. The probability is that the horn is a repair.