how to tell if a keris is new or old?

A. G. Maisey · 20th September 2015, 10:49 PM

Everything David has written I endorse 100%.

Experience --- I mean a real lot of experience --- can help, but sometimes you just can't tell. I've got probably as much experience as it is possible for anybody living in a western society to get, I've been taught over extended periods by the most noted Surakarta keris experts of the late 20th century, I've collected and studied the keris for more than 60 years. I can still be wrong.

Panembahan Harjonegoro was one of the most noted Javanese art authorities and keris experts of the 20th century. His ability to judge a good keris was second to none. He was also a well known mark for the Javanese Keris Mafia. Even he could be fooled.

On more than one occasion I saw the man who was arguably the greatest Javanese keris expert of the 20th century keep a keris in his possession for several days before he would give an opinion on it.

Occasionally we may be able to tell if something is old or recent from a photo. Mostly we cannot.

In respect of the bonang serenteng keris shown here, from the photo I do not know with certainty if this keris is what we now call Kemardikan , ie, after Indonesia became an independent nation, or whether it dates from the early 20th century. Even if I handled it, I could still be in doubt. Based upon what can be seen in the photo it certainly looks very recent, and probably Madura- Sumenep, but I would need to strip it and examine under magnification before I would give a defensible opinion.

In respect of the "Mataram" attribution. Well, strictly speaking, that was not a lie. Somewhat misleading perhaps, but not a lie. The two ruling Houses of Central Jawa are both branches of the House of Mataram. Strictly speaking, we are still in the Mataram era. There are a number of keris classifications that spread across the period from the second half of the 16th century until the present, and nobody ever uses the full name for these classifications, the "Mataram" part is always understood.

Tangguh (classification) Senopaten is actually Mataram Senopaten, Sultan Agung, is actually Mataram Sultan Agung, and so on, right through Amangkurat, Kartosuro, Surakarta, Ngayogyakarta, then we have Tuban Mataram, Mataram Matesih, Madura Sepuh Mataram --- and there are an uncounted number of minor sub-divisions of "Mataram" . We can play pretty loose with "Mataram" if we feel so inclined.

But all that said, this bonang is actually a pretty nice keris, only the mendak, and possibly the pendok are a bit less than decent.

20th September 2015, 10:49 PM	#3
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	Everything David has written I endorse 100%. Experience --- I mean a real lot of experience --- can help, but sometimes you just can't tell. I've got probably as much experience as it is possible for anybody living in a western society to get, I've been taught over extended periods by the most noted Surakarta keris experts of the late 20th century, I've collected and studied the keris for more than 60 years. I can still be wrong. Panembahan Harjonegoro was one of the most noted Javanese art authorities and keris experts of the 20th century. His ability to judge a good keris was second to none. He was also a well known mark for the Javanese Keris Mafia. Even he could be fooled. On more than one occasion I saw the man who was arguably the greatest Javanese keris expert of the 20th century keep a keris in his possession for several days before he would give an opinion on it. Occasionally we may be able to tell if something is old or recent from a photo. Mostly we cannot. In respect of the bonang serenteng keris shown here, from the photo I do not know with certainty if this keris is what we now call Kemardikan , ie, after Indonesia became an independent nation, or whether it dates from the early 20th century. Even if I handled it, I could still be in doubt. Based upon what can be seen in the photo it certainly looks very recent, and probably Madura- Sumenep, but I would need to strip it and examine under magnification before I would give a defensible opinion. In respect of the "Mataram" attribution. Well, strictly speaking, that was not a lie. Somewhat misleading perhaps, but not a lie. The two ruling Houses of Central Jawa are both branches of the House of Mataram. Strictly speaking, we are still in the Mataram era. There are a number of keris classifications that spread across the period from the second half of the 16th century until the present, and nobody ever uses the full name for these classifications, the "Mataram" part is always understood. Tangguh (classification) Senopaten is actually Mataram Senopaten, Sultan Agung, is actually Mataram Sultan Agung, and so on, right through Amangkurat, Kartosuro, Surakarta, Ngayogyakarta, then we have Tuban Mataram, Mataram Matesih, Madura Sepuh Mataram --- and there are an uncounted number of minor sub-divisions of "Mataram" . We can play pretty loose with "Mataram" if we feel so inclined. But all that said, this bonang is actually a pretty nice keris, only the mendak, and possibly the pendok are a bit less than decent.