How many Kris's are made of Indian steel?

[A. G. Maisey]

I think that it is probably reasonable to assume that a very great number of items made of ferric material in Jawa and the old East Indies did contain material that originated in India, however, the material that originated from India was very probably only a part of the entire manufactured article.

From a historical perspective, one of the processes in the making of keris, and other wesi aji, is the "washing" of the material. This washing is carried out to remove excess carbon from the material prior to use. Wootz has a high carbon content. If the material being used to produce wesi aji was wootz, then naturally it was necessary to subject it to repeated welding to reduce the carbon content to a manageable level.

However, the external body of the keris and some other wesi aji, is constructed of a mix of materials, "pamor". The mix perhaps made necessary to extend the quantity of material, and/or create a stronger material.

I do not think that we can ever ask:- "how many keris were made of Indian material?"

But I do think that we can assume that India was a source for much of the material used in Jawa and the East Indies for the production of keris and other wesi aji.