Preserving wooden kris hilt

[jonng]

Hi All,

I have a Palembang wooden keris hilt that's very old and light with some minor cracks. Most of the carvings are intact and I would like to preserve this. It has traces of wax which has probably helped keep it in such good condition. Should I re-wax it?

[BluErf]

I'm not an expert in wood conservation, but I reckon that a bit of wood nourishing oil and wax will be good for the longer-term preservation of the hilt. Plus, being of a dark hue, you wouldn't need to worry that much about oil stains marring the wood, which can happen to expensive pelet wood with light colour tones.

Which brings me to my next point - I've seen people put kerises wet with oil into the sheath, and guess what happens --> the mouth of the sheath gets stained permanently, and if there is really a lot of oil, some of it can seep upwards into the hilt (especially if you have thread covering the whole pesi). And if you have a light-coloured wooden hilt or ivory, you can get ugly stains at the bottom of the hilt. Again, they will be permanent stains.

So bottomline is to be careful with the amount of oil used - more is not always better. Whatever oil (applied sparingly and evenly) the hilt or blade cannot absorb should be wiped off and the blade or wood looks moistened but "dry".

A bit on micro-crystalline wax - I spoke to a conservator once. He didn't explain but he seemed to be against the idea of using micro-crystalline wax on wood and ivory. Could be something to do with the fact that the wax gets embedded into the surface and is hard to remove. Maybe it stops him from administering further conservation treatments, and he has to remove them before doing so.

[BluErf]

I think cracks in hardwood hilts are inevitable. The wood warps with age due to the convoluted wood grains exerting stress in different directions. So NOT keeping these hilts in very dry conditions may delay the process. The oil and wax applied could also help delay the cracks. However, I think they would eventually crack. It's the nature of things; nothing is permanent.

[Rick]

Interesting grain always checks sooner or later .

[A. G. Maisey]

I cannot accept that hardwood hilts will always crack.

My experience does not bear out what you say, either, Rick. Yes, fancy grains are more susceptable to checking because of the internal stresses, but I've seen museum pieces of European furniture that are 100 and more years old, that have not checked. In the next room I have a suite of bedroom furniture that dates back to the 1930's and that has some of the faniciest grain timber you'll ever see, and that has no checks at all.

If we look at hardwood in other applications, it does not necessarily crack with age, and if I look at the old wooden hilts I have, many of which are made from hardwoods, what I see is some that are cracked, some that are not.

I believe that the cracking depends on the material itself, and the conditions that have had effect upon it during its life.

In respect of preservation, I like a good quality furniture wax for polished surfaces, whether or not that polished surface has been finished with french polish or shellac. I like fine furniture oil for carved wood. An aerosol furniture polish that contains waxes such as carnauba is also OK for carved surfaces, but it should not contain silicon. To distribute on carved surfaces you can use a soft old toothbrush.

It is possible to take up the cracks in wood --- even heavily cracked wood --- by application of raw linseed oil. Its a lengthy process and can involve months of daily rubbing for, say, half and hour, which is really not all that hard to do if you just sit and rub the oil in every night while you watch the TV news.

To prevent an oiled blade from staining a scabbard, and to retain the oil on the blade, which provides the blade with protection, I wrap the wet blade in a plastic sleeve. If you belong to the Exuberant Display Clan, this won't work for you because the untidy plastic edges stick out of the top of the wrongko, or maybe the sleeve won't allow the blade to go all the way into the wrongko. However, if you belong to the Protect & Conserve Clan, plastic sleeve storage of blades is the way to go.

The conservators whom I know recommend storing ferric materials on inert surfaces, such as glass, in a temperature and humidity controlled atmosphere. This is maybe a bit extreme for a home collection, but it shows the way that the trend should go.

EDIT

A really good example in contradiction of the idea that fancy grain will always check has just occurred to me:- gun stocks.

Some of the fanciest timber you'll ever see is to be found in gunstocks, especially old English guns.

It is extremely unusual to find these old stocks with checking, where it is found, the gun is in a condition that indicates lack of care.

[Rick]

Yeah, that was too much of a blanket statement I guess .

I had Buginese wood hilts on my mind when I wrote that .

[jonng]

Thank you guys! Points noted and very much appreciated. The raw linseed oil treatment sounds like a must try for everyone with a cracked wooden hilt or sheath.

[Jean]

Originally Posted by jonng

Hi All,

I have a Palembang wooden keris hilt that's very old and light with some minor cracks. Most of the carvings are intact and I would like to preserve this. It has traces of wax which has probably helped keep it in such good condition. Should I re-wax it?

Hello Jonng,
I personally like to oil or wax wooden hilts but would personally not apply pure bee or carnuba wax on this particular piece as it will partly fill the tiny carvings and leave white specks upon drying which are difficult to remove. A dyed liquid wax would not create this visual problem but still partly fill the cavities so I would rather use oil in your case, I personally use good quality melati, cendana, rose, or almond oil.
Best regards
Jean

[Jean]

Originally Posted by jonng

Thank you guys! Points noted and very much appreciated. The raw linseed oil treatment sounds like a must try for everyone with a cracked wooden hilt or sheath.

Hello jonng,
Be careful with the raw linseed oil, if not diluted it could be very sticky after drying from my experience, try it first on an ordinary piece of wood.
Best regards
Jean

[max]

I very often just rub it with a soft towel. And that helps enough.

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes Jean, you're absolutely correct:- linseed oil, either raw or boiled, if allowed to dry by itself will leave an ugly sticky residue on the surface of the wood.

But you do not leave it to dry by itself, you hand rub the oil into the wood.

I have finished a number of gunstocks with raw linseed oil, I still have two guns with this finish that I applied near enough to 50 years ago. They've never been sticky and they still look good.

You hand rub.

However, it is not always practical to hand rub, especially in the case of something that is heavily carved. In this sort of situation you can immerse the entire piece in the oil, and it will usually take up the checking. As with hand rubbing, it takes time. A lot of time. I've got a 1930's Bali carving undergoing this treatment at the moment, I expect it will probably take until the end of the year before the checking takes up. When you take it out of the oil you need to dry it off as thoroughly as possible and brush to get into the carving, and you repeat this periodically until the oil no longer seeps out of the wood.

Where I have restored a carving by hand rubbing the oil it has mostly taken months of daily rubbing to take up the cracks.

None of this is a fast process, but it works.

The use of linseed oil in restoration and protection of wood is nothing new. It has been used in my family for four generations at least, and you will find mention of its use in books from the 19th century dealing with this subject. A linseed oil finish is the ideal finish for a wooden threshold, or external wooden stairs, it also has applications in other exposed timber. It is the perfect maintenance treatment for wooden carpenter's tools, such as mould planes & smoothing planes.

There is one problem with linseed oil, and that is that wood with an oil finish needs to be maintained --- its not a do once and forget job like shellac, or a commercial finish like Danish Oil or Truoil. In a humid climate wood treated with an oil finish will grow mildew. An oil finish is perhaps one of the best for wood articles that are in use, but for something that is to be stored, it does require the occasional rub with a few drops of oil in the palm of the hand.

In fact, just about any oil will help dry wood. One oil that perhaps should be mentioned is olive oil, that many of us would have readily available in the kitchen. Olive oil is an excellent leather cleaner and preservative, and is also very kind to wood, however it lacks the protective qualities that raw linseed has. The beauty of raw linseed is that it contains microscopic impurities that do not penetrate the wood, but lodge in the grain of the wood, over time these harden to give a protective coating.


Incidentally, old cracked horn can often be restored by soaking in baby oil, again , its no fast fix. You need patience.


Again I agree with you Jean:- natural wax should not be used on a surface with detailed carving, for precisely the reasons you mention. However, it is possible to buy good quality aerosol funiture wax that contains a mixture of waxes, including carnauba. Again, the manner of use of this is the key to a satisfactory finish. You spray it on, and then brush with a soft brush, continuing the brushing until the wax is evenly distributed and dry.


Speaking for myself, if this hilt under discussion were mine, I doubt that I would do anything to it other than to put a few drops of oil into the palm of hand, rub my palms together, and then rub the hilt until I could see no oil on my palms or on the hilt. I'd do this a few times over a few days, and finish with aerosol spray wax as mentioned above, and good brush with a soft brush. The cracking would need to be very severe for me to even consider trying to take it up.

[jonng]

Hi Guys! Sorry I used an old pic of the hilt. I have taken a quick snap of the 2 cracks on the hilt. How should I proceed?

[jonng]

Better pics.

[Marcokeris]

I'ld put a very little red-brown wax inside the cracks (...very nice hit)

[A. G. Maisey]

It depends what your personal standards are.

If you want to try to make it look as it was when newly carved, you could proceed as Marco suggests, and fill the cracks with hard wax of a compatible colour.

I personally don't like this approach, but I must emphasise that this is a valid approach. My dislike of it is just a personal thing. I used to follow this approach many years ago, and hilts with cracks that I have from 30 or 40 years ago have often been filled with one medium or another.

However, these days I tend to do as little as I can get away with when it comes to old hilts. If I think I can take up cracking with oil, I'll follow that course, but if the cracks are not too bad, I'm more inclined these days to leave them as they are.

My objection to the use of fillers is that they are a purely cosmetic approach that does absolutely nothing to assist preservation:- in other words, they can make something look good for perhaps your lifetime, but in time the filler will fall out and you're left with a hilt that still needs attention.

We only have a loan of any of these things --- keris, hilts & etc. If we truly have a love of the art and a respect for the craftsmen who produced it, we have an obligation to try to make it last another generation or two.

If this were my hilt I'd probably start hand rubbing raw linseed into it. The cracking is not bad, and I could easily live with it the way it is, but that wood looks hungry to me. I'd probably put this alongside my lounge chair and feed it with hand rubbed raw linseed for a couple of months and see what happens. Just a few drops in the palm of your hand and rub it in until it disappears from the surface of the wood, and your hands. Concentrate on the cracks and try to work the oil into the cracks.

[Jean]

Originally Posted by jonng

Hi Guys! Sorry I used an old pic of the hilt. I have taken a quick snap of the 2 cracks on the hilt. How should I proceed?

Hello Jonng,
Nasty cracks, I would do as Marco suggests (filling with dyed wax) or as Alan if you have enough patience! By the way the hilt is very finely carved but does not seem VERY old to me as there is no clear sign of wear to the carved motifs (see my specimens for reference).
I tried olive oil which is excellent for nourishing the wood as mentioned by Alan but... it stinks after drying may be unless you rub and rub again.
Best regards
Jean

[jonng]

Thank you all for your kind advice. No luck buying raw linseed oil so far. I have oiled it with olive oil and almond oil. Olive oil disappears in minutes. Almond oil stays longer. Some chatoyancy is appearing around the beak/ nose, eyes and "fang" which is nice.
How old the hilt is? I'm not sure. It certainly is not a new one. I have added a few more shots. Maybe forum members would like to have a go at it's age.

[jonng]

This one is from the Asian Civilisation Museum. Wood seems similar, but not elaborately carved, to show off the nice chatoyancy. Dated late 19th century if I remember correctly.

[Sajen]

Your hilt under discussion seems to be from a hard wood while the hilts from Jean are from more soft wood. So the missing signs of wear are in my opinion not a clear indication of the age from the hilt.

I would try the advice from Alan but you need patience. When this don't help you still have the option to fill the cracks with wax.

[DAHenkel]

I'm not a conservator but I work with them and there's a reason why the root of their profession is the same as that of the word conservative

9 times out of 10 a conservator will tell you to do nothing (or at least not very much) at all. Unless the crack is actively spreading the best and safest approach is non-intervention or minimal intervention. A little pledge to polish up won't hurt either way, but as soon as you start soaking things in oil you throw things out of whack and you could make things worse.

If the crack is active though and spreading you might consider some if the remedys suggested but go slow and observe carefully.

Sometimes the conservators drive us crazy but they're usually right.

[A. G. Maisey]

David, I'm the only one here who has mentioned soaking in oil, so I guess your remarks are directed at me, or, if not at me, at least at my remarks.

The objectives of conservation are different to the objectives of restoration.

In conservation we attempt to freeze a material object in time, that is, we attempt to prevent it from deteriorating any further than it already has, and present a picture of the object at a particular point in time.

In restoration we attempt to return the object to a state which approaches its condition prior to deterioration commencing.

The objectives of these two different philosophies are also different:-

in conservation we attempt to hold the object as close as possible to its original state in order to permit its study;

in restoration we attempt to return the object to its original state, in order to appreciate it as it was , and in many cases to continue to use it.

Sometimes I adopt the view of a conservator, sometimes I adopt the view of a restorator, it all depends upon the object concerned.

A conservator working in a modern museum environment usually has facilities at his command that are not available to a private collector or student. For instance, in the basement storage rooms of the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, temperature and humidity are controlled, and the stored objects are laid out on glass and perspex surfaces.

This approach is seldom available to a private collector.

Apart from which, many, if not most collectors of weaponry and ethnographic artifacts want those artifacts and weaponry presented in a slightly different way than is held to be the benchmark for museum presentation.

These collectors usually favour restoration over conservation.

Further, within keris culture the dominant ethic is one of continual restoration.

When we consider the use of an oil soak to tighten up grain in wood, or to bring a dry, cracked old piece of horn back to an acceptable condition, we are not conserving, we are restoring.

As with any craft, a degree of knowledge and understanding is necessary to use the techniques of oil soaking effectively. I doubt that I am able to transfer in print the product of my +50 years experience in the use of the various techniques of restoration and conservation, but I can provide very basic pointers and those with an interest can begin the process of educating themselves.

My family background is that of four generations of fine art cabinet makers. Much of the work of a fine art cabinet maker is restoration. I am not a cabinet maker, but I have had some training in the trade. Additionally, I have worked with conservators employed by two museums in Sydney, and have trained several people in these museums in some aspects of conservation and restoration.

[Paul Duffy]

I've followed the comments on repair and conservation with great interest.For wood,and sometimes metal[eg old arms & armour],I use Renaissance Wax Polish.This was originally formulated in the British Museum research laboratories in the 1950s.The Museum found that all commercial waxes based on the usual natural waxes contained acids which,in time,could spoil original finishes on historic collections of furniture.
This wax has a crystalline structure much finer than totally natural waxes,it confers a highly efficient moisture resistance.
I've used it on old pistol and rifle stocks,and keris hilts & sheaths.And gun barrels.
The wax is Ph neutral and should not damage even sensitive materials.
I've also used it on 18&19th century sword blades,but not on keris blades only because of the rougher finish of the keris blades.
I live near the sea,so my collection is susceptible to salty sea spray,and the wood to moisture and dry heat,and mould.
Has any one else tryed this wax?

[Rick]

Hi Paul,

I'm a Ren Wax user; not for everything though .

[A. G. Maisey]

I had never heard of the involvement of the British Museum in development of this wax, Paul.

I've never used it, principally because I have always found the materials I grew up using to be totally satisfactory. Bear in mind:- most of what I know was learnt from my father, and if I were to say he was a traditionalist, I'd be understating. My favourite wax for a long time has been Antiquax, which is a blend of beeswax and carnauba wax. I also use an aerosol wax --- Marveer --- that is made of the same materials.

Its certain that microcrystalline wax will provide better protection against moisture than the natural waxes, because it is more elastic. However, I'm afraid I have a deeply ingrained prejudice against using petroleum based products on wood. I'd be happy to use it on a french polished finish --- which I guess would probably be the finish involved in the historic furniture you mentioned --- but I'd take a lot of convincing before I'd be happy with it on a polished wood surface with no french polish on top.

When I think about it, I've possibly got a philosophical objection to using a material that will freeze a finish in time. I can completely understand why a conservator working in a museum would wish to halt a finish at a particular point in time, but to me, fine wooden objects are living things --- not unlike a keris --- and they should be permitted to continue the aging process, not be stopped in this progression at one spot, forever. A personal view, and I do not seek to convince anybody that this point of view is correct.

For a while back in the 1950's and 1960's I had a nice little sideline going turning Cadet Martinis into sporting rifles. Don Black did the metal work, I did the stock work. I reckon that I stocked just about every calibre you could build a Martini into. I bought 20 of them during the first week Mick Smith had them in his window at ten shillings each. Later on I bought a few more, and they cost me a whole lot more than ten shillings.

Anyway, most of those stocks had a hand rubbed oil finish, and on the two I still have, its as good now, or better than it was 50 or so years ago. That's the main reason I like hand rubbed oil finishes.

If the British Museum found that natural waxes could cause some deterioration in an old finish on furniture, well, I'm sure that is so. That I have never heard of their involvement demonstrates that my knowledge is somewhat dated --- and I guess also that I've never read the Renaissance ads before tonight.

However, although I am more than prepared to admit this deficiency in my knowledge, I will also comment that in my limited experience my methods and materials have proven to be totally satisfactory --- maybe because I have not been involved in conserving historic furniture.

I was involved in custom knife making for a while, and at that time Renaissance wax was highly favoured by both knife makers and collectors. I always thought there was more hype than reality attached to it, but I can see now I was wrong.

Edit

I've just recalled something that I heard about Renaissance wax from other custom knife makers. It seems that once you apply the stuff, its there forever, it has an ingredient in it --- polysomethingorother --- that makes it somewhere between difficult and impossible to remove from a wooden surface. This could be a positive, or a negative factor, depending upon one's point of view.

[Paul Duffy]

As I mentioned the British Museum scientist found that commercial waxes based on the usual natural waxes contained acids which,in time could spoil original finishes on collections of furniture.
When thinly applied Ren Wax is glass clear with no discoloration either of the wax or the underlying surface.I gather that on furniture and wood carvings the wax echances grain patterns.It protects existing finishes such as french polish and it can be applied to sanded unfinished hardwoods.
Should surface repair or restoration be needed,Ren Wax can be removed by rubbing with white spirit.
Alan,I was interested to read that you use Antiquax.I used this till very recently when the tin was empty,and I couldn't find some more.But I used this on wood,not on metal.I agree that wood and metal have to age,I don't want to freeze a finish.I am concerned to protect wood and metal finishes from mould and rust.
I have found that Ren Wax is very effective in protecting gun stocks from mould in damp conditions,and european sword blades from rust.
I'm a small private collector,not a public museum.I do like to get the pieces of my collection out and enjoy having them.This includes friends handling them.
I recently cleaned some rust spots from a Balinese blade with another product from the same source as Ren Wax.I have now applied a thin layer of wax and will be interested to see how effective the cleaning job has been.
The cleaner is Pre-Lim Surface Cleaner,which is used in professional restoration of arms & armour,sculpture,brass & copper exhibition cookware ceramics and other surfaces.
Formulation is based on blended Neuburg silica chalks in a water/white spirit emulsion.After cleaning an application of wax is recommended.
I would not have used Ren Wax,or Bees Wax,or Antiquax on finely carved keris hilts,or to fill in a split.Most of these applications are to heavy,and difficult to remove ,as Jean has mentioned.
If I have a split hilt or sheath I prefer to leave to piece as it is,apart from cleaning it.
Also with a finely carved piece ,such as th Palembang hilt illustrated by Jonng,I would not want to clog up the carving with wax.I prefer to keep the piece clean,with a light wipe with Ren Wax,or an oil.
I don't keep my collection in the open,or hung on the wall.The dust and salt spray is too strong.But in wet periods,I still have to check for mould or rust.I sometimes think that I would enjoy seeing my keris as I walked into a room,however I know they are there,in drawers,and I enjoy getting some out from time to time.
I agree with Alan about using baby oil for ivory,works well if the ivory is dry.

[Rick]

I use the stuff to protect blades mostly .
Never keris blades, just smooth finished steel .

It can be a bit of a bother to remove; white mineral spirits, as Paul said, will remove it with a bit of work .


There are some decent products in their line .


>Lives next to a salt marsh<

>Rust never sleeps<

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes Paul, I only use the Antiquax on wood.

If I wished to use wax on a blade I would use Renaissance wax, but I don't use wax on blades.

Its not suitable for keris blades because of the rough surface, and the oil and sleeve method I use for keris has proven to be effective for polished blades as well, so I've never bothered with Renaissance wax.

I note all you say about Renaissance, and there are a lot of people who use it and swear by it, however, I've always found my methods totally satisfactory, so I guess I'll just keep on using them.

I would imagine for armour, or for firearms, Renaissance would be excellent, but thankfully I do not have to concern myself with those types of items.

[Paul Duffy]

Alan,thank and yes I'll continue with the oil & sleeve system for blades.
I will also try to find some Antiquax.

[A. G. Maisey]

Paul, this link may be of interest:-

http://www.antiquax.info/home/distri...on=Australasia