Willem, perhaps nobody else responded to your initial post because Marco has already given as complete an answer as is reasonable.
I would place the dress of this keris as pre-WWII, although I am inclined to think that the mendak is probably considerably earlier.
The blade is without doubt an old blade, I will not be as brave as Marco and suggest hundreds of years, but it most definitely pre-dates the mid-19th century.
You have asked for an explanation of the characteristics that mark this blade as old.
Willem, this is far too broad a question to even attempt an answer.
Think about it this way:- if you saw a new Mercedes Benz automobile you would instantly recognise that that vehicle was most certainly not one from the 1950's, nor the 1930's, you would know instantly that it was most certainly not Karl Benz' invention of 1886. Equally, if you saw a Mercedes Benz from the 1950's you would immediately know that it was not a post 2000 production. You would know all of this immediately and instinctively, simply because you live in a world where the automobile is a part of your culture and your daily experience.
For people who have made a serious sturdy of the keris the situation is exactly the same:- when we see a keris that bears all of the hallmarks of age, we instantly recognise it as something that was not made yesterday. Past this it can become quite difficult, especially if we wish to classify the keris in accordance with the tangguh system.
Not all keris were made by masters. Not all keris turned out exactly as the maker had intended when he began. Not all keris comply with recognised standards. As a keris becomes older the passage of time erodes its features and it no longer looks as it looked when new.
Consider all these things and then consider the pamor carried by this keris.
It looks as if what might have been attempted was bendo sagodo/wengkon. However, this motif is no longer particularly clear. Maybe it was clear when the blade was new :- maybe it was not clear when the blade was new. As it remains at the present time it does not really comply with any recognised standard, and five different people could probably give ten different opinions.
In summary it is an old East Javanese keris of rather ordinary quality in old dress, but that dress is not as old as the blade. It would be a good solid addition to any collection.
|