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Old 18th March 2008, 02:14 PM   #10
Bill S
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Join Date: Feb 2008
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PenangsangII
The keris is dipped into poison solution called baceman (snake head pickles mixed with human faeces) just before battle or fight. So, the poison would still be working.
There are a few possible flaws in this theory. First, pickled snake heads would not be an effective poison. Snake venom would only be "still working" if the venom were extracted from the venom glands and put on the blade and used while still fresh. Pickling the heads does not do this. The human feces would definitely cause infection - but such infection would only set in days after a person was stabbed in battle and would not have any effect on the battlefield. And I've got doubts as to how many people keep jars of pickled snake heads and feces around the house.

This scenario also assumes that the keris was a battlefield weapon. I think there is plenty of support for its use as a weapon of personal defense/offense. But as a battlefield weapon it would fall short, and I'm not aware of its use in this context.
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