Identifying 3 hilts

[milandro]

I am bumping this,

I have a similar hilt on a Balinese Keris, the seller, a great connoisseur in the NL, told me that this represents Rarung (or Rarong) a witch asistent of Rangda

[David]

Originally Posted by milandro

I am bumping this,

I have a similar hilt on a Balinese Keris, the seller, a great connoisseur in the NL, told me that this represents Rarung (or Rarong) a witch asistent of Rangda

I have seen this hilt described as the witch Calon Arang, but this all seems fairly recent and i cannot recalling seeing this form in old hilts, so i am not convinced it is a traditional form.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calon_Arang

[A. G. Maisey]

Calon Arang & Rarung are both female.

I cannot clearly see if this figure has the attributes of a woman, but it appears not to have.

[milandro]

The version of this carved hilt that I have appears to have breasts, and on account of this I’d say it may look female at least in the intentions of the carver. I understand that other elements that we in the west may suppose feminine aren’t necessarily so especially in the Balinese iconography, but the general “ feel” is that this is a feminine entity. Whether Rarung or otherwise.

I found remarkably few references (in western Internet) to Rarung and no Iconographic source (other than this one above ) to compare to my carved figure on the Hilt of may Balinese keris.

But here are picture of this hilt for you to see.

[Gustav]

I find interesting, that this recently carved figure, which perhaps could be identified as Rarung, holds a piece of fabric in each hand.
(In Barong play Rarung has a red magic cloth, which makes her invisible, when put over the head, but serves also other purposes during the play)

An older Bali Wadon hilt of David possibly has a piece of fabric in one or both hands.

Finally the old Wadon hilts from 16/17th centuries hold a piece of fabric in the left hand.

In modern Barong play Rangda has a piece a piece of magic fabric, called Kekudung or Kekereh, which makes her invisible when put over the head. Also Barong himself has such cloth.

Under the many layers of possible simplification/trivialisation/vulgarisation perhaps the same thing can be supposed as origin of this.

[milandro]

Thanks, interesting remarks.

I wonder if there is anything specific in the Rarung story (or any other traditional character ) which would specifically be connected with the feature, to me very striking of the face being covered by the hair.

It seemed to me that should be a distinctive feature, present in both these carvings ,but ( please, correct me if I am wrong, I know you will) not very common in general .


ADDENDUM: I have found a description of the Calon Arang story

https://australian.museum/learn/cult...inting-e74214/

She is a widowed woman which at some point of the story transforms herself into Rangdna ( I am quoting from the link)

"The fifth scene has two parts: on the left the Minister and his party attack Calonarang, who is asleep without her headdress and with hair loose, in a pavilion within her house. In the right section Calonarang has transformed herself into the invulnerable witch Rangda. She is shown incinerating the minister, while his followers are dismayed and prepare to flee. Some versions of the story suggest that Calonarang was actually killed while still asleep and only then assumed her magical form and retaliated...."


So this may be really Calon Arang (in a way so this is just before she turns into Rangda )

[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

Calon Arang & Rarung are both female.

I cannot clearly see if this figure has the attributes of a woman, but it appears not to have.

I have seen many fairly recent examples of this hilt form that are all clearly meant to be female so i believe it is safe to assume this one also exhibits some feminine form if viewed from the right angle.
Still had to be sure if it is meant to represent Calon Arang or any other specific female character though. I don't believe i have ever seen this form in an antique hilt. If anyone has an antique example i would love to see it. But until then i consider this form to be contemporary in nature.

[A. G. Maisey]

The carver might know what he intended to carve --- on the other hand even he might be a bit curious about exactly who he finished up producing.

I have watched carvers --- and silver chasers too --- allowing their hands to work quite independently of their attention, while they talked, smoked or watched TV.

[milandro]

I have come across this very crude example of an ultramodern (and rather unfinished) hilt with some character with the hair covering the face, I can’t say who this may represent but again just showing it to show the fact that this theme , rare though it is, surfaces every now and again.

[milandro]

found another depiction of this deity, also this identified as Rarung

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by milandro

I am bumping this,

I have a similar hilt on a Balinese Keris, the seller, a great connoisseur in the NL, told me that this represents Rarung (or Rarong) a witch asistent of Rangda

Hello,

I think your Netherlands connoisseur is correct. I have had a look in "Krisgreppen En Scheden Uit Bali En Lombok" from the deceased Mr. van Veenendaal, one of the best books about Bali hilts, and found on page 23 a similar hilt in ivory described as Rarung. See attached picture. Sorry for the quality, taken by handphone.

Regards,
Detlef

[werecow]

In case anyone is curious the Rarung segment reads:

Rarung is the daughter and helper of Rangda/Durga in the Barong dance. The tapering ellipsoid decorations running from top to bottom are meant to represent the tangled hair.

[Rick]

These two handles on this page represent Rarong?
Quite a difference!

[milandro]

thanks Detlef, I come across this depiction every now and again and then I remember this thread

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by milandro

thanks Detlef, I come across this depiction every now and again and then I remember this thread

You are welcome!

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Rick

These two handles on this page represent Rarong?
Quite a difference!

Yes, indeed Rick! But Mr. van Veenendaal seems to think that both are representations of Rarung.

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by werecow

In case anyone is curious the Rarung segment reads:

Thanks for the translation!

[werecow]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Thanks for the translation!

Any time! Actually just to correct myself, it reads "the long tangled hair", but I guess the "long" part is kind of obvious.

[milandro]

I have found another 3 examples of this deity, this time the person whom put these images together called it Rangda but , in my mind, this is , again, Rarung.

Strange though this may be, Rarung representations I come across are mostly found in the Netherlands. However , I am told the NL are the second largest (for amount of krises) country in the world after Indonesia, so it may be not so unusual after all.

I always think of this thread every time I find this figure. The images were small and the quality was already enhanced to the outmost of the reasonable.

[Jean]

Another one from my collection (recent piece).

[milandro]

thanks, it is a very interesting theme and the figure looks more curvaceous ( feminine) or less as the example here ^ (masculine?) in different carvings.

[JustYS]

Originally Posted by milandro

I have found another 3 examples of this deity, this time the person whom put these images together called it Rangda but , in my mind, this is , again, Rarung.

Strange though this may be, Rarung representations I come across are mostly found in the Netherlands. However , I am told the NL are the second largest (for amount of krises) country in the world after Indonesia, so it may be not so unusual after all.

I always think of this thread every time I find this figure. The images were small and the quality was already enhanced to the outmost of the reasonable.

Hi milandro,

What is the material for the white hilt?

Thank you

[milandro]

perhaps I wasn't clear, they aren't mine, I found these on line so I cannot answer your query , I don't think it is Ivory.

[Pendita65]

The hilt with the hair as a veil is :

Balu Mekabun she hides in the shade of the twilight zone, waiting for a chance to catch you!'

This Hindu godess and widow of Shiva, wears her hair down. Nobody sees her ugly monster face, so she can easily appraoch her victims without being recognized as the devouring monster Rangda.

This is what i found on the Dutch Keris group on FB.

[A. G. Maisey]

In the high level of Basa Bali, the word "Balu" can be used to refer to Dhurga, however, the phrase "Balu Mekabun" means a "widow who has been left with one or more daughters".

Further usages of "balu" are:-

balu bunter/ balu putung = a widow or widower without children

balu makarang = a widow left with one or more sons

balu mwani = a widower

balu remban = a widow or widower left with many children

a secondary meaning for "balu" is to bet on a cockfight, this was actually the context in which I first heard this word used.

"balu" is a contraction of "balung"

I know a number of Hindu people who have Dewi Dhurga as their household deity, Dhurga is actually a protective deity, but as with many deities, Dhurga also has a terrible aspect. In all creation the good and the bad, dark & light, protection from & exposure to evil are merely opposite sides of the same coin.

The key to a safe and harmonious existence is to keep those good & bad things in balance.

Regrettably, many people from outside cultures that are foreign to their own choose to select from those cultures only the things that they wish to see, hear, believe or understand.

[milandro]

I have acquired new information from my new friend Duncan who has much experience in general in the Kris hilts world but a special interest in the Kris micro world of Lombok.

He told me that Locally Raring is known as a Selak, a spirit perhaps a phantom, called Selak.

you can see from this image found on like that obviously there the figure of a female with the hair covering the face has arrived to these days


Fascinating the fact that Lombok appears to have developed a quite different iconography from Bali