highly dressed keris

simatua · 3rd November 2005, 07:02 PM

On my last trip to Indonesia i was lucky to find an old keris, very high dressed.
Lucky to take it home, because export of indonesian antiques is not aloud and they are very strict, and lots of control post at the Indonesian border/airport.

Anyway...In my opinion an very old ( think late modjapahit,early mataram?) keris with 5 luk (pendawa).

Looking at the materials, of the pendok, ukiran and wrangka this must have belonged from someone with an highly rank.

The pendok made from silver, with Inten, tip of bottom made of gold, same as the Symbol of the Djogjakarta kraton. I Think the original colour of the pendok was black, and I dont know if this means something for a rank, like red colour only was aloud for the radja, and relative family. Maybe somebody can tell me more about this........

nechesh · 5th November 2005, 12:37 AM

Hi Simatua. I'm surprised no one has made any comments yet. It does indeed appear to be a nice, well formed and old keris. Nice catch. I will leave it to others to argue tangguh on this one.

As to whether it belonged to a person of high rank or not i couldn't say for sure. Firstly, many keris that you will find for sale now-a-days aren't necessarily in the ensemble they were in as cultural artifacts. Many times parts are switched out to make a keris more appealing in the market place. That being said, if this keris is dressed as it would have been for it's Javanese owner then i would say that it would belong to a person who had at least some money OR the relative he recieved it from did. I'm not sure i would necessarily equate having money with "rank", though they do sometimes go hand in hand. I would doubt this is a court piece.
Anyway, it is an attractive old keris with a very nice pendok. I also like the wood of the wrongko very much.
BTW, i know more than one person who regularly take antique keris out of Indonesia. I wasn't aware there was a problem with the practice.

simatua · 5th November 2005, 08:01 AM

Thanks for the comment. I am a realistic man, and i know what you mean.
A fancy pendok and a wranka does not make a nice keris. Even I did not bought it on the market; it came from the inheritance of a late general TNI (Indonesian army) related to my wife. At the other hand he was a collector himself and did buy the keris, so no special stories.
The keris is written ( for whats it worth) to empu Bharada (?) i never heart and read about, and cannot find it in the books

Speaking about court pieces, i doubt it myself this is one.i expect a lot from a Court blade.And i have seen in collections of others and myself better blades( just simple dressed) than this. but........

Still questions are remaining. the wranka(old) is exactly fit for the blade, and i am sure not a re-fitting.
And according to the book of ing. G Tammens ,Estimating the age and looking at the pamor i have to conclude this is a "padjang" keris.; many times found in higher society (and court.)

Kiai Carita · 5th November 2005, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by simatua

The keris is written ( for whats it worth) to empu Bharada (?) i never heart and read about, and cannot find it in the books

Dear keris experts,

Mpu Baradah was a poet and spiritual advisor of King Erlangga in the ancient kingdom of Kediri in East Java. Mpu Baradah reportedly could fly but did not make keris.

Taking old keris out of Indonesia is illegal, just like taking any other ancient artifact. Of course many people do take old keris out of Indonesia but they are breaking the law and should have the keris confiscated. Personally when I travel with my keris I bring a letter from the Dinas Purbakala (Dept of Antiquities) saying that they are my inherited pusaka.

Pajang was a short lived kingdom between Demak and Mataram, situated near modern day Solo. It only had one king and in the past Pajang keris were thought to be not very good as the kiongdom only lasted for one generation. Owners of Pajang keris are from all levels of society.

If not mistaken I think that the black kemalo on the pendok would be used by an abdi-dalem, a courtier inside the kraton, or a common person.

Warm salaams and Happy Eid to all
KC.

simatua · 5th November 2005, 11:17 AM

Thanks for your information Kiai, i appriciated it, and looking at the treads you posted, really can see you know your stuff. For myself i am not a expert just a passionate collector.

Export antiques from Indonesia is iligal, but i my (collector)eyes better than let it rust away. The knowledge and intrest of young people in Indonesia is very low and they rather have a new hp or dvd than a nice piece of antique.
For example i got a old keris very rusty(took me 2 weeks to clean),....nobody wanted to have it! Also saved an antique wayang kulit just before people wanted throwing away....

nechesh · 5th November 2005, 05:59 PM

Thanks for you informative comments T.C. and a very happy Eid to you.

The question on the removal of antiquities is always a tough one. I do understand your concern, but i must agree with Martin to some extent as well. You are, unfortunately, a minority in a nation which becomes more and more "westernized" as global economy takes it's toll on indigenous culture. Many artifacts are indeed rusting into oblivion due to the lack of interest by the present and next generations. Do we watch that happen or make an attempt to save what can be saved. If Martin's new keris were confiscated at the border, where would it have ended up? Would it now be rust-free and restored? Would it be in the hands of someone who loved and treasured it or lying in some draw slowly rusting away?
BTW, i don't think there are really any keris experts here, just enthusiasts and lovers of a dying artform seeking as much knowledge and understanding as we can find in the limited resources available to us.

3rd November 2005, 07:02 PM	#1
simatua Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 69	highly dressed keris On my last trip to Indonesia i was lucky to find an old keris, very high dressed. Lucky to take it home, because export of indonesian antiques is not aloud and they are very strict, and lots of control post at the Indonesian border/airport. Anyway...In my opinion an very old ( think late modjapahit,early mataram?) keris with 5 luk (pendawa). Looking at the materials, of the pendok, ukiran and wrangka this must have belonged from someone with an highly rank. The pendok made from silver, with Inten, tip of bottom made of gold, same as the Symbol of the Djogjakarta kraton. I Think the original colour of the pendok was black, and I dont know if this means something for a rank, like red colour only was aloud for the radja, and relative family. Maybe somebody can tell me more about this........ Attached Images

5th November 2005, 08:01 AM	#3
simatua Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 69	Padjang keris Thanks for the comment. I am a realistic man, and i know what you mean. A fancy pendok and a wranka does not make a nice keris. Even I did not bought it on the market; it came from the inheritance of a late general TNI (Indonesian army) related to my wife. At the other hand he was a collector himself and did buy the keris, so no special stories. The keris is written ( for whats it worth) to empu Bharada (?) i never heart and read about, and cannot find it in the books Speaking about court pieces, i doubt it myself this is one.i expect a lot from a Court blade.And i have seen in collections of others and myself better blades( just simple dressed) than this. but........ Still questions are remaining. the wranka(old) is exactly fit for the blade, and i am sure not a re-fitting. And according to the book of ing. G Tammens ,Estimating the age and looking at the pamor i have to conclude this is a "padjang" keris.; many times found in higher society (and court.)

5th November 2005, 11:17 AM	#5
simatua Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 69	TQ Thanks for your information Kiai, i appriciated it, and looking at the treads you posted, really can see you know your stuff. For myself i am not a expert just a passionate collector. Export antiques from Indonesia is iligal, but i my (collector)eyes better than let it rust away. The knowledge and intrest of young people in Indonesia is very low and they rather have a new hp or dvd than a nice piece of antique. For example i got a old keris very rusty(took me 2 weeks to clean),....nobody wanted to have it! Also saved an antique wayang kulit just before people wanted throwing away....

5th November 2005, 12:37 AM	#2
nechesh Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 940	Hi Simatua. I'm surprised no one has made any comments yet. It does indeed appear to be a nice, well formed and old keris. Nice catch. I will leave it to others to argue tangguh on this one. As to whether it belonged to a person of high rank or not i couldn't say for sure. Firstly, many keris that you will find for sale now-a-days aren't necessarily in the ensemble they were in as cultural artifacts. Many times parts are switched out to make a keris more appealing in the market place. That being said, if this keris is dressed as it would have been for it's Javanese owner then i would say that it would belong to a person who had at least some money OR the relative he recieved it from did. I'm not sure i would necessarily equate having money with "rank", though they do sometimes go hand in hand. I would doubt this is a court piece. Anyway, it is an attractive old keris with a very nice pendok. I also like the wood of the wrongko very much. BTW, i know more than one person who regularly take antique keris out of Indonesia. I wasn't aware there was a problem with the practice.

5th November 2005, 05:59 PM	#6
nechesh Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 940	Thanks for you informative comments T.C. and a very happy Eid to you. The question on the removal of antiquities is always a tough one. I do understand your concern, but i must agree with Martin to some extent as well. You are, unfortunately, a minority in a nation which becomes more and more "westernized" as global economy takes it's toll on indigenous culture. Many artifacts are indeed rusting into oblivion due to the lack of interest by the present and next generations. Do we watch that happen or make an attempt to save what can be saved. If Martin's new keris were confiscated at the border, where would it have ended up? Would it now be rust-free and restored? Would it be in the hands of someone who loved and treasured it or lying in some draw slowly rusting away? BTW, i don't think there are really any keris experts here, just enthusiasts and lovers of a dying artform seeking as much knowledge and understanding as we can find in the limited resources available to us.