Bali Keris for classification

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by Marcokeris

Michael
The hilt could be a Bali one too.
I said Lombok because in Bali is easy to listen bali people speak about gerantiman handle as " a Lombok piece" ... probably because gerantiman is very usual in Lombok keris.

Dear Marco and Michael,
Lombok people have the same keris and sheath as Bali. But "gerantim" hilt, that is specific Lombok. Although you may find such hilt in used also in Karangasem (Bali). There was time, when Lombok had special relation with Bali. This was "told" too via the name of their "favorite" pamor: "tambangan badung" by Lombok people. "Tambang" (according to a lombokese/sasak, Mr Alwi Moerad -- my source) means big rope. And Badung, is an important region in the kingdom era in Bali (the name of Badung still exists till now).

Lombokese also uses balinese type of "danganan" (hilt) such as Togogan (hilt with friendly demon face or "patung perabu" -- king statue), bondolan (standard wooden bali hilt) and cekah solas (with kind of wringkling carving in the middle of the hilt).

And about the blade. Any lombok keris blade with relief, they classify those kind of kerises as "keris tantri" (keris which its gandhik has carving motives such as pendeta or priest, naga and elephant)...

Ganjawulung

[David]

Michael, thanks for showing this beautiful and unusal keris. I am really just guessing, but i am willing to go along with Lombok as an origin based more on the blade than anything else. It is my understanding that they went for more unusal daphurs in Lombok and this one certainly seems unusual to me. Hilts and sheaths can always be changed out so they are not the best proof of origin...and it would seem from the fit of the blade in the sarong that this is not an original marriage.
The naga seems very unusal to me as well because it has wings, and if i am not mistaken, a leg and paw along the bottom, so i guess it is actually meant as a composite animal (naga, garuda, singo???). Very interesting indeed. I can't really tell from these photos if this is orginal to the blade, but it seems possible that it is. Was there any provenence when you acquired it?

[VVV]

Thanks all for your comments!

On the fit I think it's original to the blade. The problem is that almost all horn and ivory sheaths shrinks a bit here in Scandinavia. It's the same with all my keris.
On the provenence it's eBay a month ago and US...

Ganja, on keris tantri, do you know what it would be called without the "tantri"?

Michael

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by VVV

Ganja, on keris tantri, do you know what it would be called without the "tantri"?

Michael

Hi Michael,
I would call it "dhapur garuda-naga" (of course, this Java name is not a proper name for a balinese keris..). You may compare with these javanese kerises with relief: "garuda" (giant eagle?) and old dhapur of "paksi naga liman" (garuda-naga-elephant)...

Ganjawulung