Bali Hilt ID

[A. G. Maisey]

David, the rendering of figures in Bali is very often quite relaxed.

A carver might think it is a good idea to carve an amalgamation of several figures, simply because that takes his fancy on the day, or the material he has suits it, or he thinks it will be commercially viable.

The people who make these things are essentially craftsmen trying to make a living. They are not Brahmin priests, so we shouldn't try to affix a specific identity to all figures.

Even when a specific character is intended to be represented, the Balinese carvers more often than not get it wrong, and have Ganesha with his trunk in the wrong hand, or with an attribute that does not belong to him.

Lets just say they do things a little bit differently in Bali.

Looks like a pretty fair sort of keris.

[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

David, the rendering of figures in Bali is very often quite relaxed.

A carver might think it is a good idea to carve an amalgamation of several figures, simply because that takes his fancy on the day, or the material he has suits it, or he thinks it will be commercially viable.

The people who make these things are essentially craftsmen trying to make a living. They are not Brahmin priests, so we shouldn't try to affix a specific identity to all figures.

Even when a specific character is intended to be represented, the Balinese carvers more often than not get it wrong, and have Ganesha with his trunk in the wrong hand, or with an attribute that does not belong to him.

Lets just say they do things a little bit differently in Bali.

Looks like a pretty fair sort of keris.

I understand what you are saying Alan, but it doesn't keep me from wanting to better understand what the carver may have had in mind.
Here is a statue from Bali that was labeled Ganesha.

[BluErf]

Wow, that statute would suggest that amalgation/reinterpretation of features could have had some history...

[A. G. Maisey]

Here's a few more images of Ganesha.

The wooden one is a carving by a Balinese master carver from about 25 years ago.

The stone one is in my back yard.

The hilts are in my collection cabinet.

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes Kai Wee, the freedom of expression of Balinese craftsmen has been recorded from the earliest contact with Bali by outside observers. However, that statue is probably much, much younger than one might think. They carve from very soft stone in Bali, and this, combined with the tropical climate means most stone work is replaced every generation or so. There is no ethic of preservation of images or puris or other art or architectural works. The honour is in the creation, not in the preservation, so if something degrades and needs to be replaced, it simply provides the opportunity to gain more honour.

[Henk]

David,

That's a very handsome find. About the hilt, I agree with Alan. He has certainly a point about the craftsman trying to make a living. Every artist who tries to make a living makes objects that probably will sell best by the audience but he will not forget his own interpretations of the subject.

Looks like a great keris. Would like to see the whole blade and the scabbard as well.

[David]

Obviously Ganesha can be depicted in many ways and the form seems to evolve at the whim of the carver somewhat.
The statue i posted might not be anicent, but it does have some age to it and seems to be in a public space where it serves some community purpose. All i am trying to do is understand to the best of my ability the intention of the carver of my hilt. The parallels between the statue and my hilt (body and trunk position, texture of trunk, shape of mouth and position of tusks, presence of human nose as well as trunk, etc.) lead me to believe that the hilt carver based his figure (at least in part) on certain previous aspects depicted in older figures (even if not ancient, i think we must accept this statue as being at least "historical" in some sense). Though i wasn't sure if this hilt was intended as a Ganesha before, based on this statue i would say it was...that is, if this statue was also intended to be Ganesha.
Here is another more modern mask of Ganesha that also shows the same mouth, tusk position and trunk attachment as my hilt.

[Anandalal N.]

Sorry I missed the thread since I had to go out of town. Now with the close up I agree that it is unlikely that it is a raksha solely since the appendage seems attached to the upper lip. As for raksha with bulging eyes etc., there are several aspects to this. Firstly are the physical characteristics of the figures - bulging belly, flaming hair, rounded appearance, the half crouched stance etc., which are distinguishign features as well as the instruments or accessories. Then there are the other factors which are added on to depict certain aspets or even manifestations such as 'raudra' loosely interpreted as ferocious - bulging eyes, open mouth displaying fangs, teeth etc. These are not primary characteristics for distinguishing the figure since they depict emotion etc.... This is however moot since I agree that it probably is not a raksha and since Maisey calrifies that matter further.

Good luck.

[David]

Originally Posted by Henk

Looks like a great keris. Would like to see the whole blade and the scabbard as well.

Sorry Henk, not sheath with this one. And i would like to keep the topic of discussion on the hilt.