unusual keris

[satsujinken]

closer look

and why do I think this one is unique, because eyes can be deceiving

you can look closely and you'll find nothing unusual, just plain old keris in not so good quality

but this one, most probably THE BLADE was made from WOOD, not metal. It is very light, and by light I mean very light wood. You will be surprised when you see it and then held it personally

now the story becoming murky, as the previous owner's son only said this was one of the pusaka owned by his late father and specially cared, and even oiled regularly

why making a keris from wood ? and why bother masking it to look like a metal ? spiritual reasons ?

why wasting effort to make specific dress for it ? why care for it if it's just a "toy"

any comments ?

Donny

[Jean]

Hello Donny,
The dress is Madurese and probably recent, not Balinese? Astonishing wooden blade!
Regards

[Rafngard]

I think "The World of the Javanese Keris" mentions something about dancers using keris made from leather. Perhaps this is related?

Thanks,
Leif

[David]

Yes, i would agree with Jean that the dress is rather low end and recent Madura dress. This is the kind of dress most often found on replica keris sold in import stores around the world and probably in local markets for tourist. However, those usually have cast iron blades, not wood.
Since this was kept as a treasured item i am inclined to lean toward Leif's suggestion that this object may have been a theatre prop that perhaps belonged to someone in the family of this person you received it from, but i wouldn't place that dress older than the 1960s or 70s. Of course the "blade" could be older than that, i suppose, but suspect this object isn't quite as old as you think it might be. It would not seem all that unusual to consider such an object to be a family pusaka if your grandfather (or grandmother) was an accomplished dancer or deep into wayang and had passed this down to the father and then the son.

[satsujinken]

thanks for the input

I will try to contact my friend (this keris was one of his father's pusaka, before he passed away) to gather more stories

and after some discussion with couple of friends yesterday, they suggest me to try to put it into water .... see if it's really floats. I strongly believed it will

will update the info, soon

[satsujinken]

Originally Posted by Rafngard

I think "The World of the Javanese Keris" mentions something about dancers using keris made from leather. Perhaps this is related?

Thanks,
Leif

leather ?? hmmm ... I don't think it's leather, wood is the most probable

[Rafngard]

Originally Posted by satsujinken

leather ?? hmmm ... I don't think it's leather, wood is the most probable

Right, sorry. To be clear, I do not doubt that it is wood.
My thought was that if we have one cultural context for a non-metal keris, then two is at least possible. I thought maybe it was related, but not the same.

That said, hey, if one person made a prop from leather, why couldn't another make one from wood?

Thanks,
Leif

[David]

Originally Posted by Rafngard

My thought was that if we have one cultural context for a non-metal keris, then two is at least possible. I thought maybe it was related, but not the same.

That said, hey, if one person made a prop from leather, why couldn't another make one from wood?

Other opinions might vary, but i would argue that there is no such thing as a non-metal keris. The leather objects used for dance and theatrical purposes are not keris, they are, as you have noted, a "prop made from leather". I suspect that this is indeed some kind of prop for theatrical purposes. Again, that does not discount it from being somebody's family pusaka, but it is not a keris IMHO.

[Rafngard]

Originally Posted by David

Other opinions might vary, but i would argue that there is no such thing as a non-metal keris. The leather objects used for dance and theatrical purposes are not keris, they are, as you have noted, a "prop made from leather".

A fair point.
Perhaps a pseudo- or quasi- keris?
Certainly a "keris like object."

Thanks,
Leif

[kai]

Hello David,

Other opinions might vary, but i would argue that there is no such thing as a non-metal keris. The leather objects used for dance and theatrical purposes are not keris, they are, as you have noted, a "prop made from leather". I suspect that this is indeed some kind of prop for theatrical purposes. Again, that does not discount it from being somebody's family pusaka, but it is not a keris IMHO.

No doubt, the intrinsic value/power is based on the iron/steel blade of any keris (noting a few exceptions made from bronze).

However, if a keris performs as a culturally accepted "prop" in a ceremonial setting of the culture, say, a wedding, one might also argue that it is a real keris, isn't it?


Donny, I'd love to hear any updates on its material. If wood, it seems to have received some surface treatment to make it look more like a corroded metal blade; is the gonjo separate or just indicated by an incision? One option would be to use some sandpaper to remove any surface treatment at the end of the pesi to get a glimpse of the base material?

Regards,
Kai