My Java keris

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes, not Jogja.

As Detlef says, maybe Solo, maybe Banyumas, or maybe just generic Central Jawa.

Again, as detlef has advised, use something long enough and rounded to work out the dents from the inside. The proper tool for this is a sanglon, which is bronze or brass in the form of a gandar and is what is mostly used to form the gandar when it is being made. A substitute for this tool is just anything that will do the job without breaking. A piece of oval shaped hardwood works quite well.

[Johan van Zyl]

Gentlemen, I am truly honoured to have come so far with this thread, thanks to your willingness to supply your valued comments to my questions! I will definitely follow your advice.
I know this thread can't go on forever (!) so I would now ask you to bear with me one more time. This is the final aspect of my Javanese keris, the blade. Afterwards I will retire from this thread and devote much time to digest all your information you have kindly given me.

1 Taking everything you have said into account, I now believe this keris blade was made between 1800 and 1900. Would that be a fair guess?

2 What would the significance/meaning be of the sogokan on the sorsoran of my keris blade? (I have actually read somewhere that some call them blood grooves!)

3 What kind of hardened tool could the empus have used to chisel these magnificent features of the ricikan into the metal of the sorsoran? Surely, a job like this requires high quality tool steel! Was it available in those olden days?

4 I understand the ron dha to be only one single, specific indentation on the greneng. Would I be correct?

5 You have considereed the pamor of my keris to be adeg. Is that pattern only produced by twisting, or might there be another method of creating adeg?

6 Lastly, I have read that the two different "sides" of the sorsoran are called "front" and "rear", but are there not Javanese names that we call those "sides", the kembang kacang side and the pointed greneng side?

THANK YOU!
Johan

[A. G. Maisey]

Really good questions Johan.
My responses are interpolated, and perhaps some of our other members may have something to add


Gentlemen, I am truly honoured to have come so far with this thread, thanks to your willingness to supply your valued comments to my questions! I will definitely follow your advice.
I know this thread can't go on forever (!) so I would now ask you to bear with me one more time. This is the final aspect of my Javanese keris, the blade. Afterwards I will retire from this thread and devote much time to digest all your information you have kindly given me.

1 Taking everything you have said into account, I now believe this keris blade was made between 1800 and 1900. Would that be a fair guess?

Yes.

2 What would the significance/meaning be of the sogokan on the sorsoran of my keris blade? (I have actually read somewhere that some call them blood grooves!)

The sogokan where it exists can be understood as a representation of the lingga, the primary icon of Siwa and of the male principle; the sogokan seems to have developed from the lines that are found in some early monumental representations of the keris and that follow the triangular blade shape, this triangular representation of a symbol of Siwa can be seen in the bronze Keris Buda shown in Image 25, and is occasionally found in much later blades.

This is a quote from :-
http://www.kerisattosanaji.co/INTERPRETATIONPAGE1.html

3 What kind of hardened tool could the empus have used to chisel these magnificent features of the ricikan into the metal of the sorsoran? Surely, a job like this requires high quality tool steel! Was it available in those olden days?

Very old keris --- say, pre-16th century --- were probably carved by using stones to create the topographic features, even in the 19th century some village smiths in Jawa used stones as both anvil and hammer. In the 20th century, although we did not use stones to create the topographic features, some keris makers did use stones and abrasives made from crushed stones to refine and polish keris blades. Files, cold chisels, and scrapers are the traditional tools used by keris makers through historic times, and before the second half of the 20th century they made their own tools from scratch. I was taught during the 1980's, and it was necessary for me to make some of the tools that I used, by the modification of old factory made tools.
Generally speaking, even today many, if not most, Javanese artist-craftsmen make their own tools.

4 I understand the ron dha to be only one single, specific indentation on the greneng. Would I be correct?

Yes. The ron dha is the feature that is frequently found as part of the greneng that resembles the Javanese letter "dha".

5 You have considereed the pamor of my keris to be adeg. Is that pattern only produced by twisting, or might there be another method of creating adeg?

Adeg pamors are not a twist pamor. Adeg pamors are produced by first welding a mlumah pamor, then changing the orientation of the layers so that when the core of the blade is welded between the two pieces of pamor material, that material is at 90 degrees to the blade core.

6 Lastly, I have read that the two different "sides" of the sorsoran are called "front" and "rear", but are there not Javanese names that we call those "sides", the kembang kacang side and the pointed greneng side?

Front sogokan = sogokan ngajeng, back sogokan = sogokan wingking

The kembang kacang is the front of the blade.

[Johan van Zyl]

Thank you, Mr Maisey!

[rasdan]

Nice keris. I really like the warangka!

[Johan van Zyl]

Rather late than never, I say, Rasdan.
Yes, you're right: that warangka drew a lot of oohs & ahhs.
Cheers Johan