Timoho (Kleinhovia hospita L)

[Raden Usman Djogja]

if most part of sheath is dominated by pelet, what its motif name?

warm regards, OeS

[brekele]

Pelet
Many kind of pelet in timoho wood considering javanese people.
Here some of name
1. PELET KENDHIT.
2. PELET TULAK.
3. PELET PUDHAK SINUMPET.
4. PELET PULAS KEMBANG.
5. PELET DHORENG.
6. PELET NGAMAL.
7. PELET PULAS GROBOH.
8. PELET BERAS WUTAH.
9. PELET NGIRIM (NGINGRIM) KEMBANG.
10. PELET GANDRUNG.
11. PELET CEPLOK KELOR.
12. PELET CEPLOK BANTHENG.
13. PELET SEGARA WINOTAN.
14. PELET GANA.
15. PELET SEMBUR.
16. PELET NYERAT.
17. PELET DEWADARU.
18. And probably there are some more ….


What is pelet in timoho wood considering keris lover?
Stil don’t get a good describe/explanation about it.

Bre

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes, and there are other names as well---some invented on the spot because they will either A)--help to raise the price, or B)-- help to raise somebody's prestige.

In my notes I do not have an example precisely the same as the wrongko you show, but if we look at this wrongko, essentially it has dark in the center of the body, and light on either side. Perhaps this conformation could be classified as timoho slempang---a slempang is a strap that is worn over the shoulder.

Or maybe the dark area is too wide for timoho slempang, maybe we should call it timoho sidi---but really, that would be stretching it because the white is in the wrong place. Pity it has those two light spots on either end, without those we could give it as bosokan.

This name of the timoho thing is like a lot of names in the field of the keris---cross the street and somebody will give you a different name.Especially today when we have so many newly born, self-created experts around. It tends to become a little less confused when you talk to old men who have been in the keris trade for most of their lives---but these people don't publish books or join keris discussion societies.

Centini should be required reading for all who wish to learn the keris. Not for the information to be found there, but for the advice and the wisdom.

[Raden Usman Djogja]

dear Alan,

I've heard but never seen motif of "bosokan" (decomposed "fruit"). As far as I heard that it was called bosokan motif because all or most of part of sheath was pelet. Perhaps forumities who have sheath with bosokan motif can share its picture. Merci par avance.

I just heard slempang motif. Do you think it is different from sampir (as if a long scarf or a shoulder-belt) motif. I have timoho sheath with sampir motif. I will upload it for this forum. Some people said it had 5 strips of sampir motif whilst others said it had 4 strips of sampir motif. What do you think wheter it has 4 or 5 strips?

Centini? Would you please to share what advices dan wisdoms that readers can get from Centini Book? I've never read it eventhough I've heard it thousand times.

Warm regards,
OeS

[A. G. Maisey]

G'day Usman--- yeah, sampir is the same as slempang. As to how many strips your wrongko has, I guess it depends on how you count them, I personally would count four, but if I did not want four strips for some reason, I could easily convince myself that there were five, by counting the double one in the middle as two.Five is a nicer number, so let's just say it has five.

Centini is riddled through with good advice, wisdom, and a nice strong lading of soft porn. Interesting read. However, the one little bit of advice that is more relevant than any other to a student of the keris is that if he wants to learn the keris, he needs to go to the market place to learn.

[fearn]

Hi All,

Putting on my botanical hat, the "pelet" pattern in the wood looks like fungal growth, and the english term for it is spalting (here's the wikipedia link). Spalted wood is weaker than unspalted wood, because it has been (or is being) rotted by a fungus. The pigment changes are being produced by fungal activity, either staining the wood dark or bleaching it, depending on the species. As demonstrated here, spalting can often be so pretty that it commands a premium price.

Note that I'm talking about the underlying phenomenon that's producing the patterns, not the way they are classified. That is your forte, not mine.

Most of the fungi that produce spalting patterns are wood rotters, and unless the wood in the keris and sheath have been treated to kill the fungus, they will keep rotting away, albeit slowly in most cases. I'm not an expert on treating wood rot, but please be aware of the possibility, and check to see if the pattern changes over time. If it does, you may want to have it treated at some point.

F

[Raden Usman Djogja]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

Five is a nicer number, so let's just say it has five.

G'day Alan

Five is a nice number after Indonesian independence espicially in new order era. It is related to number of pancasila (five moral principles). Before independence, it could be related with Pandawa brothers (pandawa=five) in Indonesian mahabharata version. Even in Indonesia, pre-WWI, mahabharata was not as famous as ramayana. Only after the spread of militeristic culture adopted from Japanese soldiers, people loved mahabharata especially in chapter the 18 days bharatayudha (war amongst bharata family members).

In ancient jogjanese keris' sheath made from timoho wood which had sampir motif (shoulder belt motif; it is not a precise translation), the 5 sampirs was
nicer than 4 sampirs. Only high elevated person was allowed to use it in public space. In private room, everyone could do freely. Furthermore, the same rule was also applied for bosokan (decomposed) motif. That is why, based on kraton/palace sources, the sheaths of several heirlooms were made from spalted timoho woods which had bosokan motif. So, colleagues who have bosokan motif, please share its picture with us. merci par avance.

warm regards,
OeS

[Marcokeris]

OeS
Some timoho sarongs with different patterns....