Keris and Hilt for Comment

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by BluErf

Hilt looks new, but there is a Sulawesi form like this as well. I think most forumnites must be thinking of the Riau Bugis form which is similar to this. But I think this form is more akin to Sulawesi. Jon posted a similar kind of hilt a while back.

BluErf,
This is the sole picture of the hilt. And please regard too, to the other picture I took from Mr Hamzuri book, "Petunjuk Singkat tentang Keris" (Short Guide on Keris) published by the Department of Education and Culture (1973). Mr Hamzuri showed to the readers a Riau Lingga (Sumatera) keris which appearance looks like Sulawesi keris...

Ganjawulung

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by ganjawulung

BluErf,
This is the sole picture of the hilt. And please regard too, to the other picture I took from Mr Hamzuri book, "Petunjuk Singkat tentang Keris" (Short Guide on Keris) published by the Department of Education and Culture (1973). Mr Hamzuri showed to the readers a Riau Lingga (Sumatera) keris which appearance looks like Sulawesi keris...

Ganjawulung

Ganja, I've seen the picture from the book and had seen the hlit up-close, when it was loaned to Malay Heritage Centre (in Singapore), some time ago. Also featured on the front cover of the book, Court Arts of Indonesia.

The form is similar but not the same...

[BluErf]

Originally Posted by ganjawulung

BluErf,
This is the sole picture of the hilt. And please regard too, to the other picture I took from Mr Hamzuri book, "Petunjuk Singkat tentang Keris" (Short Guide on Keris) published by the Department of Education and Culture (1973). Mr Hamzuri showed to the readers a Riau Lingga (Sumatera) keris which appearance looks like Sulawesi keris...

Ganjawulung

Hi Ganjawulung,

This keris you referred to is a famous keris, and it is an archetypal Riau Bugis keris. I would say it is the benchmark for all Riau Bugis kerises. Shahrial has a couple of Riau Bugis kerises with similar hilts. Perhaps Shahrial could post pics of his 2 keris hilts for comparison.

The reason why I think your keris hilt is Sulawesi rather than Riau was because of the pierced-through 'appendage' on the underside of the head and the more acute angle of bending of the head. The "appendage" is also present in the 2 examples I referred to above, but is not so obvious in Riau examples. The more acute angle of bending is a common feature in Sulawesi pistol-grip hilts.

However, I may be wrong. So if anyone has any information, references, please raise them. Thank you.

[PenangsangII]

According to Suhartono Rahardjo in his book 'Ragam Hulu Keris Sejak Zaman Kerajaan' published by Lembaga Kreasi Penerbitan Masyarakat (LKPM) Jan 2003, the kemuning hulu (kerdas) shown by Ganjawulung is from Sumbawa island, derived from Bugis pistol grip hulu. The author himself is an avid collector of keris hilt.

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by PenangsangII

According to Suhartono Rahardjo in his book 'Ragam Hulu Keris Sejak Zaman Kerajaan' published by Lembaga Kreasi Penerbitan Masyarakat (LKPM) Jan 2003, the kemuning hulu (kerdas) shown by Ganjawulung is from Sumbawa island, derived from Bugis pistol grip hulu. The author himself is an avid collector of keris hilt.

For general knowledge, Suhartono Rahardjo's hilt book is good, but it does have its fair share of less accurate information for hilts outside Java. It should be taken with a pinch of salt. Perhaps, it might be due to hilt understanding from a Javanese standpoint.

Michael (VVV) have a similar hilt type, mounted on another weapon, which is not a keris, if I recall correctly.

Kai Wee, I'll take a close-up of my hilt soon, for comparison.

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by Alam Shah

For general knowledge, Suhartono Rahardjo's hilt book is good, but it does have its fair share of less accurate information for hilts outside Java. It should be taken with a pinch of salt. Perhaps, it might be due to hilt understanding from a Javanese standpoint.

Dear Shahrial,
So which book do you think is better on hilts? I knew personally Suhartono Rahardjo a couple years ago, but no more contact for a long time. As far as I know, he was (is) an engineer, working in Soroaco (nikel industry in Sulawesi), but he is Surabayanese... He has many collections on Nusantara hilts...

Ganjawulung

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by ganjawulung

Dear Shahrial,
So which book do you think is better on hilts?

That depends, which type of hilts are we talking about. Peninsular hilts are not reflected in Suhartono's book. On page 66, Fig. 111, I don't think it's a Lampung hilt. For Fig. 112, I don't think it a Pekakak hilt form, either.

Originally Posted by ganjawulung

I knew personally Suhartono Rahardjo a couple years ago, but no more contact for a long time. As far as I know, he was (is) an engineer, working in Soroaco (nikel industry in Sulawesi), but he is Surabayanese... He has many collections on Nusantara hilts...

Thanks for the intro. If you happen to meet him, send my regards, for writing such a book which benefit us collectors. I reckon he does have an extensive collection, like you.

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by PenangsangII

According to Suhartono Rahardjo in his book 'Ragam Hulu Keris Sejak Zaman Kerajaan' published by Lembaga Kreasi Penerbitan Masyarakat (LKPM) Jan 2003, the kemuning hulu (kerdas) shown by Ganjawulung is from Sumbawa island, derived from Bugis pistol grip hulu. The author himself is an avid collector of keris hilt.

Example of one of Sumbawa's hilt form...
(Ref: Tammens - De Kris 3, Pg: 193, Fig: 194.)

[Alam Shah]

Example of a similar Sulawesi hilt. For comparison...
(Ref: Kerner's Keris-Griffe, Aus Museen Und Privatsammlungen, Pg: 141, Fig: 212).

[ganjawulung]

Thanks Shahrial,
This is for more comparison...

Ganjawulung

[ganjawulung]

And different with these other Sulawesi hilts...

[PenangsangII]

Dear Pak Ganja,

Your hilt looks like from Sulawesi Buton if Mr Suhartono is right. I think when discussing Sulawesi (keris, sarung or hilt for that matter), we ought to remember not to confuse Buginese with Makasarese, though generally speaking they are from the same stock. I guess we shouldnt confuse Javanese with Sundanese either.

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by ganjawulung

...This is for more comparison...

... similar to mine. Mine is mounted on a Peninsular Malay keris...

[Alam Shah]

Originally Posted by BluErf

... This keris you referred to is a famous keris, and it is an archetypal Riau Bugis keris. I would say it is the benchmark for all Riau Bugis kerises. Shahrial has a couple of Riau Bugis kerises with similar hilts. Perhaps Shahrial could post pics of his 2 keris hilts for comparison.
...

An example of a hilt mounted on a Bugis Riau keris.
http://alamshah.fotopic.net/p31970087.html

Another example mounted on a Southern Peninsular keris.
http://alamshah.fotopic.net/p31948135.html

Compare...
Note: Throughout the Malay archipelago, there are many cases of mix and match with parts from other region.

[PenangsangII]

AlamShah, thanks for your yet again 'pictorial' explanation .

If I may ask, what's the difference between the straits & Sulawesi hilts?

From my own observation, there's not much difference, maybe the way the keris is held the straits way - pinch grip (cucuk sanggul style), and Sulawesi way - real pistol grip (segenggam padi) due to taller pendokok stem. But this is of course subject to personal preference of the wielder .

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by BluErf

The reason why I think your keris hilt is Sulawesi rather than Riau was because of the pierced-through 'appendage' on the underside of the head and the more acute angle of bending of the head. The "appendage" is also present in the 2 examples I referred to above, but is not so obvious in Riau examples. The more acute angle of bending is a common feature in Sulawesi pistol-grip hilts.

Thanks for the useful infos, BluErf. In the coming days there will be more hilts, sheaths and kerises from Bugis, Sulawesi and Lombok which will be send to me by some friends. So I will need to have more infos from you..

Ganjawulung