Bali keris

SidJ · 22nd July 2025, 05:25 PM

An old Bali kris. I think it's 19th century from the vibes of the thing but open to thoughts. 44cm blade. Is the pamor wos wutah?

David · Yesterday, 03:50 PM

Yes, looks to be 19thC with Wos Wutah. The cekah solas (assumption since i can't quite count the cuts to know if they add up to 11) hilt is, of course, backwards and needs to be turned 180 degrees. Does it have a uwer? I can't tell because of the string from the tag. Has and old original Bali stain, which despite the worn out areas i would not personally restain.

A. G. Maisey · Yesterday, 11:15 PM

I'm not so sure that this pamor is wos wutah --- or, as they refer to it in Bali "wusing wutah". There are a number of variations within the wos wutah classification, & this particular pamor that Sid has shown us does not fit any of them, except in the sorsoran.

If we look at the grain of the contrasting material, it starts as a simple, rather fine, random pamor, that if it continued thus for the length of the blade would probably fall within a wos wutah classification, however, in this blade that does not happen, in this blade the pamor grain runs at an angle across the blade after it leaves the sorsoran, indicating that the material was twisted before forging to final shape.

I believe that if I handled this keris I would be looking for a different name for the pamor rather than "wos wutah". From the photos I'm not certain what I would name it as, but I think the selection of name would be from:-

tambang(an) badung or lilit or buntel mayat or kupu tarung.

As to age of this keris (blade only), I feel that in the hand I might be inclined to date it as pre-1800.

In respect of restoration, I'm with David:- do not restain. My personal approach to a blade in a condition such as this one, is to work over it under magnification & pick the rust out of the pores & pits in the metal with a saddlers awl. I do not attempt to do this in one sitting, it is too hard on the eyes and too difficult to maintain concentration, I can manage about an hour or maybe only 40 minutes, at a time, I work using a jewellers loupe and strong light source. For me, this job can last for months, just doing a little bit every day that I can.

In any case, it is a nice old keris.

22nd July 2025, 05:25 PM	#1
SidJ Member Join Date: Apr 2020 Posts: 208	Bali keris An old Bali kris. I think it's 19th century from the vibes of the thing but open to thoughts. 44cm blade. Is the pamor wos wutah? Attached Images

Yesterday, 03:50 PM	#2
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,227	Yes, looks to be 19thC with Wos Wutah. The cekah solas (assumption since i can't quite count the cuts to know if they add up to 11) hilt is, of course, backwards and needs to be turned 180 degrees. Does it have a uwer? I can't tell because of the string from the tag. Has and old original Bali stain, which despite the worn out areas i would not personally restain.

Yesterday, 11:15 PM	#3
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,039	I'm not so sure that this pamor is wos wutah --- or, as they refer to it in Bali "wusing wutah". There are a number of variations within the wos wutah classification, & this particular pamor that Sid has shown us does not fit any of them, except in the sorsoran. If we look at the grain of the contrasting material, it starts as a simple, rather fine, random pamor, that if it continued thus for the length of the blade would probably fall within a wos wutah classification, however, in this blade that does not happen, in this blade the pamor grain runs at an angle across the blade after it leaves the sorsoran, indicating that the material was twisted before forging to final shape. I believe that if I handled this keris I would be looking for a different name for the pamor rather than "wos wutah". From the photos I'm not certain what I would name it as, but I think the selection of name would be from:- tambang(an) badung or lilit or buntel mayat or kupu tarung. As to age of this keris (blade only), I feel that in the hand I might be inclined to date it as pre-1800. In respect of restoration, I'm with David:- do not restain. My personal approach to a blade in a condition such as this one, is to work over it under magnification & pick the rust out of the pores & pits in the metal with a saddlers awl. I do not attempt to do this in one sitting, it is too hard on the eyes and too difficult to maintain concentration, I can manage about an hour or maybe only 40 minutes, at a time, I work using a jewellers loupe and strong light source. For me, this job can last for months, just doing a little bit every day that I can. In any case, it is a nice old keris.