Hello Bill and other forumites,
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I think that a number of 'hybrid' ivory hilted moro kris are showing up. I'd guess a least 4 have been posted on this site fairly receintly. I have no trouble with some one restoring missing parts but think it's a real shame to destroy a legit antique.
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Creating antique-looking composites (solely forged for market reasons) has been going on for a long time both in collector communities as well as in the respective countries of origin. Utilizing genuine, old spare parts or patination of newly crafted pieces are obvious strategies - both of which destroy a piece of historic evidence as has been noted already. (Of course, the same is true for removing parts from an existing ensemble be it a hilt from a kozuka blade, a relief from a temple, or a relic from an archeological site...
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If a hilt was in poor condition, I can see making a simular hilt & would keep the original with the sword. I hope that who ever is making these hybrid's have saved the old hilts but it appears they are now permently seperated from the swords.
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Sure, not only will the connection be lost (the main goal of forgery) but also most damaged parts will get discarded. OTOH, fittings have often been exchanged at the whims of the owner already in the original cultures which makes it hard to draw a clear line. Short of scientific analyses, one will often only be able to guess from the age of patina, bindings and other materials used wether the change was still done in the "good, ol' times" rather than more recently.
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IMO, these hybrid's lessen the value of the original.
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We should also keep in mind that in most cases new materials are being artificially aged and that, for example, newly sourced ivory has most certainly been obtained in an unsustainable as well as generally unethical way.
Regards,
Kai