Slim Kojuk Mrenges Keris Hilt from Madura

[COYOTE]

I recently bought a Kojuk Mrenges keris hilt, made in Madura Island and believed to be very old elephant ivory. I am very curious about his size. As far as I understand, there are basically 2 types of these Kojuk Mrenges keris hilts : one being much slimmer than the other. But the present one is even slimmer than the slim model.
Please have a look on the pictures figuring a "normal slim" model of Kojuk Mrenges and an other "much slimmer".
The measures of the 2 pieces are :
The "normal slim" one :
length 9.5 cm,
thickness of the piece without considering the base : 2.1 cm
measures of the base : 2.4x2.4 cm
The "much slimmer" one :
length 8.9 cm,
thickness of the piece without considering the base : 1.4 cm
measures of the base : 2.0x1.7 cm
So, as can be seen, there is a quite important difference on the thickness of the 2 pieces, 2.1 cm against 1.4 cm.
Would it be possible that this keris hilt was made for a woman or for a child ?
Otherwise, would it have an other explanation ?
Thanks in advance in helping me to learn from the experts ...
Best Wishes from Rio

[David]

My immediate thought was that the carver was working with the amount of material that was available to them at the time. I am not sure that a hilt would necessarily need to be even slimmer than the already slim version you show to accommodate a small hand.
Here is my own "slim" version of this style of hilt.

[Sajen]

Hello Patrick,

I have handled a lot of this slim Kojuk Mrenges hilts over the years but can't tell you the exact purpose of this slim hilts and I never have handled a keris with such a hilt where I have been sure that the ensemble is original and already long together. Will post my example when the light it allows to take pictures.

Regards,
Detlef

[David]

I'm not sure if it means anything, but my example is indeed on a patrem blade.

[COYOTE]

Thank you David and Detlef for your precious information.
As it seems, and I think it is absolutely correct, that the usual slim Kojuk Mrenges hilt will fit perfectly for small hands.
So, could this smaller model have been made for a very young child, not old enough to use it but as part of a ceremonial or festivities dress ?

[David]

Originally Posted by COYOTE

Thank you David and Detlef for your precious information.
As it seems, and I think it is absolutely correct, that the usual slim Kojuk Mrenges hilt will fit perfectly for small hands.
So, could this smaller model have been made for a very young child, not old enough to use it but as part of a ceremonial or festivities dress ?

I don't think very many very young children would have keris for ceremonial purposes. A hilt for a patrem seems more reasonable.

[A. G. Maisey]

Actually David, young children did wear keris. There is a reference to this in the Ying Yai Sheng Lan, and I've seen it in other places too. Even now, if a a young boy gets dressed in full formal dress, he will wear a keris sometimes. I think I remember that the age at which they began/begin to wear a keris was/is 6. A six year old Javanese child is quite a bit smaller than a six year old of European stock.

But this does not mean that a small hilt might not have been intended for a woman, or even for a small man.

[Jean]

This slim hilt has a normal lenght for a Madurese piece (about 9 cm) and a practical explanation for its small diameter could be that it was made from taring duyung (dugong tusk) which has a quite small size as compared to other local sources of ivory (elephant tusk and spermwhale tooth).
Regards

[David]

Originally Posted by Jean

This slim hilt has a normal lenght for a Madurese piece (about 9 cm) and a practical explanation for its small diameter could be that it was made from taring duyung (dugong tusk) which has a quite small size as compared to other local sources of ivory (elephant tusk and spermwhale tooth).
Regards

That was my first thought in post #2, that the size of this hilt was most likely determined by the size and shape of the material being used to carve it.
Alan, thanks for the additional info on children with keris. I was aware that this did happen, but always thought it to be a rare occurrence. Certainly not all children as young as 6 carried keris or we would see a lot more patrem size keris i would think. Or would they sometimes wear a full-size keris for formal occasions?

[COYOTE]

Thank you David, Maisey and Jean for your concern and precious information.
I am sending other 4 pictures that might help for identification of the material, marine ivory (dugong tusk or whale tusk or other marine animal..) or elephant ivory).
I could not see Schreger lines on the pieces but it may happen because the piece is old and has a very dark patina.
Other 4 pictures are being sent.
Thanks again.
Cheers !!

[COYOTE]

4 more pictures for your appreciation.
If you need more precise pictures, please just ask me and I'll send them.
Thanks !!

[A. G. Maisey]

David, we cannot think of "Jawa" as a singly homogeneous unity over all time. What we know about the North Coast of Jawa in the first quarter of the 15th century is this:-

"The men have a pu-lak stuck in their girdle, everyone carrying such a weapon from the child of three years up to the oldest man; these daggers have very thin stripes and whitish flowers and are made of the very best steel, the handle is of gold, rhinoceros horn or ivory, cut into the shape of human or devils faces and finished very carefully." (Ying -yai Sheng-lan --1416)

There has been a lot of academic discussion over the word pu-lak, and the consensus of academic opinion is that the weapon referred to is the keris.

What the Chinese visitors were seeing in 1416 was what was happening amongst the people in the trading enclaves and near countryside of the North Coast; they appeared not to gain entry to the kraton, they did not penetrate the interior. In the early 15th century in the area of Jawa that the visitors actually saw, there was a strong middle-eastern influence.

Moving on from the 15th century, and fast forward to the early 19th century, from what we can read of the behaviour and customs of the elite classes of Javanese society at that time, it would appear that children when in formal dress completed that dress with a wangkingan. This seems to have been the case right through into late colonial times, say, the 1930's.

In more recent times, 1970 through to now, I have seen children in full formal dress, and including the wangkingan.

But do these same standards apply for everybody? Of course not. Very often men of the poorer classes do not even own a keris themselves, they rent or borrow one when it is necessary to dress formally.

So when we ask "--- did all children as young as 6 carry keris?---"

we really need to place that question into the frame of time, place and social class. We also need to recognise that we are talking about the keris as wangkingan, not the keris as dhuwung.

In the early 15th century, well, if we can believe Ma Huan, yes children did carry keris, at least on the North Coast of Jawa.

In the period from around 1800 through to 1930 almost certainly some children did, at least when in formal dress.

In the period from 1980 through to right now, very certainly some children did and do, when in formal dress.

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Will post my example when the light it allows to take pictures.

Hello Patrick,

like promised, here my slim example side by side with a "normal" sized example.

Regards,
Detlef

[COYOTE]

Originally Posted by Sajen

Hello Patrick,

like promised, here my slim example side by side with a "normal" sized example.

Regards,
Detlef

Hello Detlef,
Nice pieces indeed.
Thanks again for your help.
Best from Rio,
Patrick

[Sajen]

You're welcome!