Bugis keris unusual blade/help wanted

asomotif · 18th April 2008, 12:58 PM

Dear All,

I bought this keris in Bugis dress.
The blade seems to be Ganja Iras on first sight and seems to be single steel/iron.
But the ganja shows some forging lines that indicates it is a separate ganja.

Further, what origin would this blade be ?
Any suggestions for cleaning etching the blade ?

Thanks and best regards,
Willem

Ps. I took the pictures with my girlfriends expensive 'Canon' camera and put them on a memory stick. Much better than my old 'trust' camera.

kai · 18th April 2008, 09:07 PM

Hello Willem,

Yes, definitely separate ganja. Very graceful lines, congrats!

Make sure to completely clean the blade first if you really want to etch this blade. If at all, I'd opt for non-warangan staining (e.g. hot vinegar or something similar resulting in a low contrast pamor). Make sure that you don't overdo the etching since the metal has been traditionally kept smooth on this piece - IMO these look horrible with a Javanese finish.

Regards,
Kai

Newsteel · 19th April 2008, 01:29 AM

Hi asomotif,

Congratulation for having such nice and 'graceful' keris. It got well-executed fullers and overall it does look sweet.

However I doubt this is a bugis. Yours is a keris melayu (Malay keris) from the Malaysian peninsular region. Specifically which region, I am not able to tell. Maybe our fellow friends can assist.

The sampir is made from ketengga wood and the batang is from sena (angsana) wood.

PenangsangII · 19th April 2008, 04:59 AM

I agree that this piece is of North East Peninsular origin - Trengganu is my best bet (well, Riau is my 2nd bet)

asomotif · 22nd April 2008, 11:47 AM

Thank you for the info.

I will take some time to careful clean it and see if careful etching brings some more details in the blade.

Thanks and best regards,
Willem

BluErf · 22nd April 2008, 03:15 PM

This is not a Peninsula keris. It is a Sumatran keris, probably from some region along the Eastern coast. The sampir is not made from Ketenga wood; but I don't know what wood it is.

The hilt form, the pendoko and the shape of the sampir are Sumatran forms.

The blade is also too 'fat' to be a peninsula keris.

asomotif · 23rd April 2008, 10:32 AM

Dear Bluerf,

Interesting.
Personally I have not much knowledge on the various blade forms.
Unless they are very clear and according to the book dapurs like for instance Balinese keris.

This hilt form is here in the Netherlands always assumed to be Buginese.

The scabbard is recently made, so it might be not the traditional wood sort.

I have stained th eblade yesterday with some lemonjuice.
Will post some pictures later.

best regards,
Willem

asomotif · 23rd April 2008, 12:25 PM

Well after soaking in lemon juice it got cleaner.
But to me that is just about it.

BluErf · 23rd April 2008, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by asomotif

Dear Bluerf,

Interesting.
Personally I have not much knowledge on the various blade forms.
Unless they are very clear and according to the book dapurs like for instance Balinese keris.

This hilt form is here in the Netherlands always assumed to be Buginese.

The scabbard is recently made, so it might be not the traditional wood sort.

I have stained th eblade yesterday with some lemonjuice.
Will post some pictures later.

best regards,
Willem

Hello Willem,

I can understand the confusion over the forms. I struggled for years to learn and differentiate the different forms. In fact, I still do get baffled every now and then by the various forms.

The Bugis influence in these kerises are evident, whether they're from the Peninsula or Sumatra. However, there are subtle differences which are consistent enough to differentiate between the regions. Of course, there are always the oddballs that appear every so often.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to 'tell' you easily what these differences are, at least not without showing you the physical forms. I asked the same questions myself when I started out and was rather frustrated that the seniors could not effectively articulate the differences to me. Now I find myself in the same position.

A. G. Maisey · 24th April 2008, 09:22 AM

I have very little expertise in the correct classification of keris from outside Jawa, but when I first looked at the photos of this keris the general "feeling" I had from it was Sumatra. The way in which the blade has been made, the pendongkok, the atasan of the wrongko, to me these all say "Sumatra" but they do not even whisper anything else.

Blu Erf has much more experience with these types of keris than I do, and if he casts his vote for Sumatra, that combined with my own feeling is sufficient to cause me to go along the same track.

18th April 2008, 12:58 PM	#1
asomotif Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 2,224	Bugis keris unusual blade/help wanted Dear All, I bought this keris in Bugis dress. The blade seems to be Ganja Iras on first sight and seems to be single steel/iron. But the ganja shows some forging lines that indicates it is a separate ganja. Further, what origin would this blade be ? Any suggestions for cleaning etching the blade ? Thanks and best regards, Willem Ps. I took the pictures with my girlfriends expensive 'Canon' camera and put them on a memory stick. Much better than my old 'trust' camera. Attached Images

23rd April 2008, 12:25 PM	#8
asomotif Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 2,224	lemon juice bath Well after soaking in lemon juice it got cleaner. But to me that is just about it. Attached Images

18th April 2008, 09:07 PM	#2
kai Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 3,252	Hello Willem, Yes, definitely separate ganja. Very graceful lines, congrats! Make sure to completely clean the blade first if you really want to etch this blade. If at all, I'd opt for non-warangan staining (e.g. hot vinegar or something similar resulting in a low contrast pamor). Make sure that you don't overdo the etching since the metal has been traditionally kept smooth on this piece - IMO these look horrible with a Javanese finish. Regards, Kai

19th April 2008, 01:29 AM	#3
Newsteel Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 132	Hi asomotif, Congratulation for having such nice and 'graceful' keris. It got well-executed fullers and overall it does look sweet. However I doubt this is a bugis. Yours is a keris melayu (Malay keris) from the Malaysian peninsular region. Specifically which region, I am not able to tell. Maybe our fellow friends can assist. The sampir is made from ketengga wood and the batang is from sena (angsana) wood.

19th April 2008, 04:59 AM	#4
PenangsangII Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 401	I agree that this piece is of North East Peninsular origin - Trengganu is my best bet (well, Riau is my 2nd bet)

22nd April 2008, 11:47 AM	#5
asomotif Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 2,224	Thank you for the info. I will take some time to careful clean it and see if careful etching brings some more details in the blade. Thanks and best regards, Willem

22nd April 2008, 03:15 PM	#6
BluErf Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,180	This is not a Peninsula keris. It is a Sumatran keris, probably from some region along the Eastern coast. The sampir is not made from Ketenga wood; but I don't know what wood it is. The hilt form, the pendoko and the shape of the sampir are Sumatran forms. The blade is also too 'fat' to be a peninsula keris.

23rd April 2008, 10:32 AM	#7
asomotif Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 2,224	Dear Bluerf, Interesting. Personally I have not much knowledge on the various blade forms. Unless they are very clear and according to the book dapurs like for instance Balinese keris. This hilt form is here in the Netherlands always assumed to be Buginese. The scabbard is recently made, so it might be not the traditional wood sort. I have stained th eblade yesterday with some lemonjuice. Will post some pictures later. best regards, Willem

24th April 2008, 09:22 AM	#10
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,857	I have very little expertise in the correct classification of keris from outside Jawa, but when I first looked at the photos of this keris the general "feeling" I had from it was Sumatra. The way in which the blade has been made, the pendongkok, the atasan of the wrongko, to me these all say "Sumatra" but they do not even whisper anything else. Blu Erf has much more experience with these types of keris than I do, and if he casts his vote for Sumatra, that combined with my own feeling is sufficient to cause me to go along the same track.