Unknown Prince with keris

[ganjawulung]

Originally Posted by David

Very interesting info Michel. So the question in my mind would be is a Javanese prince more likely to clothe himself or his keris in the dress of another kingdom? For some reason i suspect the dress of the keris is a better indicator of the kingdom of this gentleman than the clothes he wears especially given your story about the photo of the prince of Solo that you have.

Dear David, Michel and Eric,

Sure this is a picture of a Javanese prince. Young prince (your photo) -- quite certain -- named BRMH Sularso Kunto Suratno or King (Prince) Paku Alam VIII of Pakualaman kingdom (principality). This small kingdom in Yogyakarta Sultanate is quite complicated to explain.

Pakualaman is a small hereditary principality within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta. It was created in 1812 when Natakusuma (later Paku Alam I) was rewarded by helping the British quell the conflict in Yogyakarta in June 1812. It became the mirror-image of the Mangkunegaran principality in the territory of the Susuhunanate of Surakarta (Solo). This is why, although Pakualaman is a kingdom in Yogyakarta, but the style of keris they wear is the Solonese or Surakartan style.

When Soekarno (then the first President of Indonesia) proclaimed the independence of Indonesia (Oost Indische, East Indies) from Dutch rule on 17th of August 1945, two days later Sultan Hamengku Buwana IX of Yogyakarta and King Paku Alam VIII of Pakualaman sent message to Soekarno, that they supported the independence of Indonesia. Then, the two kingdoms merged as Special Administrative Area of Yogyakarta (DIY).

And this is another photo of the late Paku Alam VIII (1910-1998)...

GANJAWULUNG