Pamorless Tombak

milandro · 17th January 2022, 01:37 PM

Hello Again, I wanted to show you this Tombak which I received as a gift from a fellow Keris Enthusiast the tombak had no Ukiran, Mendak en Pendok but this friend looked through the collection of spares and put this together, I think that final result is not at all unpleasant.

The blade itself has no pamor, I am not sure whether to have it etched (and it will probably become all black) , the tip is ever so slightly curved , I don’t know if by design or accident. For the rest I am absolutely clueless about its origin , and I assume it is an Indonesian archipelago Tombak.

kai · 18th January 2022, 01:42 PM

Hello Milandro,

Spear heads are tough to place - this example seems to have a Sumatran touch to it but I'm far from certain.

There seem to be pamor lines visible which should exhibit decent contrast upon etching.

I believe the ensemble would be better of without the brass "selut" though.

Regards,
Kai

milandro · 18th January 2022, 02:40 PM

Cheers, I’ve heard before it may have been Sumatran but I understand it is difficult to place with any degree of certainty.

A. G. Maisey · 18th January 2022, 09:57 PM

I cannot see anything in this tombak that I can recognise.

David · 19th January 2022, 05:05 AM

Milandro, when we started this separate keris forum a while back we decided that it would be reserved only for keris and that any other Indonesian weapon would be discussed in the main Ethno forum. So i am going to transfer this thread over there.
I will say that i have never seen a tombak like this one before. I suspect it is not Javanese. It might be helpful if you would remove the blade from the unrelated bits that have been added and photograph the naked blade.

GIO · 19th January 2022, 03:51 PM

I agree with Kai, Alan and David: I can see some pamor lines, but the structure of the blade, particularly at its base, does not seem Indonesian.

A. G. Maisey · 20th January 2022, 06:28 AM

I wonder if the decorative motif on the metuk might give us a clue to place of origin?

I saw exactly this motif on the barge board of a house yesterday. I was just driving by and noticed it, even now I've forgotten where it was, but the barge board was black, and the motif was cut into it and painted white.

Maybe this tombak is not SE Asian at all, maybe something else.

17th January 2022, 01:37 PM	#1
milandro Member Join Date: Jan 2022 Location: Netherlands Posts: 472	Pamorless Tombak Hello Again, I wanted to show you this Tombak which I received as a gift from a fellow Keris Enthusiast the tombak had no Ukiran, Mendak en Pendok but this friend looked through the collection of spares and put this together, I think that final result is not at all unpleasant. The blade itself has no pamor, I am not sure whether to have it etched (and it will probably become all black) , the tip is ever so slightly curved , I don’t know if by design or accident. For the rest I am absolutely clueless about its origin , and I assume it is an Indonesian archipelago Tombak. Attached Images Last edited by milandro; 17th January 2022 at 06:57 PM. Reason: spelling

18th January 2022, 01:42 PM	#2
kai Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 3,254	Hello Milandro, Spear heads are tough to place - this example seems to have a Sumatran touch to it but I'm far from certain. There seem to be pamor lines visible which should exhibit decent contrast upon etching. I believe the ensemble would be better of without the brass "selut" though. Regards, Kai

18th January 2022, 02:40 PM	#3
milandro Member Join Date: Jan 2022 Location: Netherlands Posts: 472	Cheers, I’ve heard before it may have been Sumatran but I understand it is difficult to place with any degree of certainty.

18th January 2022, 09:57 PM	#4
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,879	I cannot see anything in this tombak that I can recognise.

19th January 2022, 05:05 AM	#5
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,113	Milandro, when we started this separate keris forum a while back we decided that it would be reserved only for keris and that any other Indonesian weapon would be discussed in the main Ethno forum. So i am going to transfer this thread over there. I will say that i have never seen a tombak like this one before. I suspect it is not Javanese. It might be helpful if you would remove the blade from the unrelated bits that have been added and photograph the naked blade.

19th January 2022, 03:51 PM	#6
GIO Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 313	I agree with Kai, Alan and David: I can see some pamor lines, but the structure of the blade, particularly at its base, does not seem Indonesian.

20th January 2022, 06:28 AM	#7
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,879	I wonder if the decorative motif on the metuk might give us a clue to place of origin? I saw exactly this motif on the barge board of a house yesterday. I was just driving by and noticed it, even now I've forgotten where it was, but the barge board was black, and the motif was cut into it and painted white. Maybe this tombak is not SE Asian at all, maybe something else.