Keris hilts with raised curved backbones

[Jean]

Originally Posted by David

Here is my example, also on a Sumatran keris. For lack of a better name i have called it a Gana hilt, though obviously these has been adjustment to the original form of the wood.
Alan, do you or anyone else here have an example that you would call a pure Gana hilt that has absolutely not adjustment to the original form of the wood?

Hello David,
These 2 Javanese gana hilts show minimum or no "improvement".
IMO these "gana" hilts from South Sumatra constitute a separate type of hilt in adition to the "putri malu/ Durga" style hilts (see pic) and the several Jawa demam style hilts from the region.

[Loedjoe]

This has been a fruitful thread - many thanks to all those who have contributed to it.

There remains the question - how do we refer to these hilts?

If hunchback is perhaps unacceptable, how about humpback? (And our descriptions could give a reference to this thread.) To refer to them as Richard III or Notre Dame or ... hilts would be a bit misleading.

[Jean]

Originally Posted by Loedjoe

If hunchback is perhaps unacceptable, how about humpback? (And our descriptions could give a reference to this thread.) To refer to them as Richard III or Notre Dame or ... hilts would be a bit misleading.

Yes, humpback or Quasimodo (reference to Notre Dame) would be suitable, or perhaps "one-armed as you will notice that the left arm is vaguely visible but the right one is cut at the shoulder level.

[Interested Party]

I think York style would be classier than hunchback. After all they are pretty glorious