Is This A Royal Keris?

[Battara]

Greetings folks,

I occasionally see this kind of keris with Palembang ivory hilt and chased gold on top of the ganga. (see pictures)

Would this be considered a royal kerns?

Any information would be helpful.

Thanks.

[Rick]

No doubt they are status pieces .
Seem a bit plain for regalia though .
I would expect to see much more gold incorporated in their dress .

[A. G. Maisey]

A "Royal Keris" can in fact be a keris of any level of quality.

Many years ago I had the opportunity on a couple of occasions to handle keris that were kept in the storerooms of the Kraton Surakarta, some of these were pusaka keris, some were keris that had been gifted at times in the past from other rulers or dignitaries, some were just keris about which nothing was known. Almost without exception all these keris were pretty ordinary.

On the other hand, the keris that are worn by high ranking members of the Kraton hierarchy are almost always very good keris. I have two Balinese keris that were once the property of one of the Balinese rulers, both these are quite exceptional in terms of quality and value, but even so, a wealthy person could put together a keris of similar quality and value, it would not necessarily need to be a member of the royal family who put it together.

This Palembang keris is a fairly frequently seen pattern, I have a couple myself, and I sold one not all that long ago. I believe something like this would probably have been owned by a wealthy man, rather than by royalty.

[Battara]

Thank you both for your insights. You have confirmed some of my suspicions and cleared up other issues.

[Roland_M]

Originally Posted by Battara

Thank you both for your insights. You have confirmed some of my suspicions and cleared up other issues.

Hello,
i have read, that the silver scabbard of Royal Keris is often painted in red. I have found some tiny remains of red color on my example and hope for a good sign.

Kind regards Roland

[David]

Originally Posted by Roland_M

Hello,
i have read, that the silver scabbard of Royal Keris is often painted in red. I have found some tiny remains of red color on my example and hope for a good sign.

Kind regards Roland

Well Roland, feel free to post photos of this keris if you choose, but i would not get your hopes up that your keris has a court origin based solely upon any tiny remains of red color on your sheath.

[DAHenkel]

At least in the Malay context, the presence of gold in a keris is a fairly good indicator that the piece was at least meant for noble wear. Early textual accounts usually proscribe wear of gold for anyone other than the ruler and those who were granted the favor to wear gold by the ruler. Later on, particularly by the early 20th century this seems to have been relaxed somewhat although only to the point where people who could afford gold could have it and in the colonial period that wasn't many people.

That said though the traditional aesthetic was commonly quite low key, with only major 'state level' keris being fully covered in gold. Authentic, provenanced examples of such keris are very rare and most are in museum collections. One must also remember that several Islamic schools of thought proscribe the wear of gold by males, which could be problematic depending on which set of rules and how willing one was to bend them.

Many high quality keris with just a bit of gold exist and many of these would have been the possessions of the nobility (bangsawan) the quality can be measured not merely by the presence of gold fittings but also finely worked and better quality materials overall. Indeed often one finds very good keris with missing or lower quality fittings that are obvious replacements for high value (gold, silver, gem-set) ones sold off for ready cash.

This also doesn't even begin to account for a completely different and parallel set of "aesthetics" for talismanic or amuletic keris which were meant to look old and time worn.

Today modern keris makers (and many fakers) are blowing up the traditional boundaries and making quite garish, often poorly crafted pieces with gold (or silver and gilded silver) fittings to try to emulate the great state pieces. This I fear skews the traditional aesthetic. I fear that fewer collectors and enthusiasts in the future will be able to recognize and celebrate the understated beauty of older pieces and most will only recognize the inherent value of the raw materials involved.

[Gavin Nugent]

Battara,

Here is a Royal Malay keris from my collections for viewing in part. Similar images on Face Book for those who follow there.

I have shared it with several privately, it is one that is well received by visitors.

As Mr Henkel mentions, beyond the gold there are often special features too...in this instance note the different faces with completely different, separate and important features, including the perfect 25 luk.

Gavin

[David]

I am not sure that the prohibition against commoners wearing gold extended to places like Jawa, Bali and Sumatra, at least not as a general rule. Perhaps someone has more information on these areas. It is also certainly known that gold kinatah could could be awarded to certain people such as valiant warriors for their deeds.
I completely agree with Dave Henkel on some of the over use of "garish" materials on new keris that anyone with the money can own. I especially see this on Bali style keris dressed in gads of gold and gemstones. That said, however, i think we can still see many old examples of keris with kinatah that were not necessarily once the property of members of the royal court, at least outside Malay Peninsula influence.

[A. G. Maisey]

The keris has been around for a very long time, and one of the reasons it has survived through the centuries is that it has changed in style, nature and social perception with the passing of time.

That which was reserved for specific ranks or purposes in the past is now available to all.

Is this a bad thing?

Personally, I do not think so. I'm going to limit my comments to consideration of this matter from a Javanese point of view, one reason being that I do not believe that here is the place for a 5000 word analytical paper.

When the keris changed from the early (Buda) form to the form that we recognise now, along with that change, its position in Javanese society changed. Changes continued, and the keris that we see being made today have a quite different position in society, and are recognised as having a different nature to earlier keris.

In times past not a lot of people could afford gold, but the position of gold in the Javanese perception is not just as a substance of value, it has the nature of a substance that carries honour. During the early classical period the celebrations held by Javanese rulers were accompanied by the distribution of gold, this was a recognition from the ruler of the worth of the minor lords who supported him. The position of the ruler in early Jawa was only firm as long as he had support from those he ruled, to ensure this support he paid respect to those below him in the hierarchy, just as they paid respect to him. Gold was the how a ruler gave honour.

Today, this overt perception of gold has to a very large extent disappeared, but I am certain that it still is carried in the sub-conscious of many Javanese people, especially those who cling to traditional values.

The Javanese people possess their own culture, and it the Javanese people who set the values within their own society. It is not the place of those who are not a part of this society and its culture to criticize the values of the society.

Certainly, we can all express our own likes and dislikes, but it is important that we recognise that these likes and dislikes may be quite the opposite to the likes and dislikes of the people who own the cultural artifact upon which we level comment.

So, if it is currently seen in Javanese society as a desirable thing to adorn something with gold, we should accept this as a legitimate expression of today's societal values.

We may or may not like this use of gold, but we cannot influence the values of a society that does enjoy seeing gold wherever it deems it to be suitable, be that on a keris, or somewhere else.

As to the confusion that might be caused at some time in the future by the current production of fine keris, I rather think not. This production in later periods of earlier keris styles has been happening for a very long time, and it doesn't really cause those who understand the keris much of a problem.

The use of garish materials? Old Bali keris, and even more recent ones can be about as garish as garish gets.

Consider this:- all those wonderful stone temples in Bali and Jawa did not look anything like what we see today when they were originally built. Not at all. They were overlaid with plaster and brightly painted --- you could see them from miles away.

Our tastes are most definitely not the tastes of those who lived and live in different places and different times.

Flamboyant display and garishness are part and parcel of Javanese society.

This sort of brings me back to something I've said many times:- if we wish to understand the keris, we must first understand the culture and society of the keris.

[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

As to the confusion that might be caused at some time in the future by the current production of fine keris, I rather think not. This production in later periods of earlier keris styles has been happening for a very long time, and it doesn't really cause those who understand the keris much of a problem.

Well Alan, i like to think about those that don't really understand keris as well. That and the fact that as time goes on it seems to me that there are less and less people who really understand the keris. Where i see the problem is that these gold and jewel encrusted current era creations are often being sold under the headline "Royal Keris" to western collectors. It's not a matter of my own personal preferences vs. the existing culture. As information unfortunately fades this general mis-information gets past along from owner to owner. That it is a royal keris because it is dressed in "royal" materials. It isn't really a matter of whether or not you or i can recognize that such keris have no actual royal affiliation. The stories grow like tales of meteoric ore or other keris half-truth we have come to know. So i think i can at least partially see where Dave Henkel is coming from with his statement.

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

The use of garish materials? Old Bali keris, and even more recent ones can be about as garish as garish gets.

Well, i used the word "garish" in quotation marks for a reason. Frankly i don't really consider expensive old Bali dress to be as much "garish" as extravagant. I do find some of the more recent examples a bit more on the garish side though. They manage to somehow use valuable materials to create an end product that somehow looks cheap. I am, of course, talking about items that come up for sale to the Western market, mostly on auction sites like eBay. I am sure that the really high end work never gets seen by the West in such venues.

I was hoping that you might add some information about any known proscriptions against wearing gold in Jawa, Bali or Madura. Dave has already expressed that in the Malay world gold was strictly reserved for the royal court. I did not think such a restriction existed in Jawa or Bali. The only thing i found on this in Bali is the following from Wiener's Visible and Invisible Realms:
"...in precolonial Bali no one, not even the Déwa Agung, was allowed to wear gold to the top of Mount Agung, to the shrine called Tirtra Mas (Golden Holy Water). The sanctions for doing so , as the narrative shows, are supernatural...Another prohibition involving gold marked social hierarchy. Only members of the royal family were allowed to wear gold on their head."
However, none of this seems to prohibit having gold on your keris or keris dress.

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes, David, of course you are correct if we consider this question from the perspective of people who have little or no knowledge of the keris, but this same problem exists in probably every field involving art and collectables.

I also collect paper weights. The very best of the current paper weights produced in China will fool anybody but a fully qualified expert into thinking they've got Murano or Caithness, when in fact they've got Beijing.

The protection against being duped?

Learn.

Learn how?

You can never ever get enough field experience, and this does not come easily, nor cheaply.

In respect of restriction on the use of gold in Jawa, there are a lot of perspectives from which to consider this question.

I think we all know the grant of battle honours by Sultan Agung after the Pati conflict, so although there may not have been a specific prohibition in place that prevented somebody not granted this honour to have a keris with a similar kinatah motif, within the context of court wear it simply would not have been done, because the honour had not been given.

Think in terms of a present day civilian creating his own Victoria Cross and then wearing it to a Royal Reception with Her Majesty. Just not going to happen.

What would have happened if it had been done would probably have involved blood and pain.

But that's within the context of the court. How about if a wealthy Arab merchant living in the world outside the court created a look-a-like a few years later? I sincerely doubt that anything untoward would have happened to him.

So with a question like this, we need to consider not just "Jawa", but the specific part of Jawa, the specific time, the specific people involved, the specific ruler. All relevant aspects of the question need to be considered on a case by case basis. We cannot generalise.

[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

So with a question like this, we need to consider not just "Jawa", but the specific part of Jawa, the specific time, the specific people involved, the specific ruler. All relevant aspects of the question need to be considered on a case by case basis. We cannot generalise.

Well of course not Alan. That is why i stated in post #9 "I am not sure that the prohibition against commoners wearing gold extended to places like Jawa, Bali and Sumatra, at least not as a general rule."
I suppose when i ventured a few posts later that "i was hoping that you might add some information about any known proscriptions against wearing gold in Jawa, Bali or Madura" that is might be those very specifics we'd be talking about.

[Battara]

I'm glad this discussion hasn't died just yet. I now understand better the situation and answer...........

[A. G. Maisey]

Well David, I did touch on one specific possibility, but to pursue this line of thought further, I believe we would probably need to address the matter on a situational basis, and to do that we would need to phase a question such as this:- were the members of the Cirebon Keraton hierarchic at all levels permitted to wear gold on their kerises on all occasions, during the period such & such to such & such?

Then it would be necessary to research this very broad ranging question, if that were possible. Possibly we might find that they could wear gold under some circumstances, and not under others, so then we would need to pin down the specific times and specific circumstances.

The way to approach this matter would be to state a rank, time, situation and court. Then try to find out something, and that something may or may not be available.

Its just not an easy question David, and we cannot use a shotgun approach, we need to specify all the parameters and then hope we can find an answer, which could well be impossible.

[David]

I certainly agree with you on specificity Alan. However, what i think we are trying to establish in this case is the likelihood of a well dressed keris with old kinatah or other gold embellishments being a "Royal Keris". To get an idea of that likelihood i would say that any tales of specific proscriptions would at least get us started in this discussion. Of course, to get specific here, that first keris posted in the original question appears to be a Palembang keris from (perhaps) some time in the 19th century. So if we are going to answer José's question we need to be looking at the Palembang court from that time period. I have not personally found much reading material on Sumatran courts and don't know if finding the answer here is possible or not. As with many things to due with the keris, answers are not always available. That does not usually dissuade me, however, from asking the question.
I also have a nice Palembang keris with a very similar gold pattern applied by what appears to be the same method. I agree with you that this (and mine) was most likely owned by a wealthy man such as a merchant rather than a a royal. So to couch my question more specifically, are you (or anyone) aware of any particular proscriptions on having gold on your keris in the Palembang court from this time period? You are, of course, correct that we would need to look closely at the specific court and time period for any keris we were to poise this question about and take them on a singular basis.

[A. G. Maisey]

If we are going to talk about Palembang, I'm afraid I cannot make any relevant contribution, although Palembang does have a recognised connection to the Javanese courts it is an area that I have never paid much attention to. Further being away from home I do not access to any references that might of use, all I have is the net, and I'm afraid I have not a great deal of faith in what is available there. Most especially so as I am currently using computers that take minutes to reload a page. One short email can take 10 or fifteen minutes to take care of.

But in any case, I think that perhaps the first thing that needs to be defined is exactly what is meant by the term "royal keris".

I used to have an exceptionally fine example of this type of Palembang keris, gold selut, finely carved ivory hilt, rose gold (suasa) pendok, very high quality kinatah. Regrettably it has been stolen. May the scumbag who now has it never sleep again.

[Battara]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

I used to have an exceptionally fine example of this type of Palembang keris, gold selut, finely carved ivory hilt, rose gold (suasa) pendok, very high quality kinatah. Regrettably it has been stolen. May the scumbag who now has it never sleep again.

I hear you and understand............unfortunately.

[David]

Yes Alan, i am afraid that José can relate to you all too well regarding stolen keris.
I suppose that in my own estimate i would consider anything that would have been owned and carried by someone considered an accepted member of the royal court to qualify. Some might be more restrictive and only see keris owned by members of the royal family to count.

[DAHenkel]

interesting discussion everyone...I would like to clarify firstly that I was not protesting change or evolution. Not at all! Contemporary innovation can be wonderful. However my concern is based in overly simplistic execution and interpretation. Because a keris is made with gold or silver its a masterpiece? A false logic but one which all too many people fall for. My issue is that the foundational principles on which keris art and craftsmanship are based are crumbling. We live in a world where cheaper, mass produced cookie cutter efforts are rewarded and the genuine artist is ignored. Alan, you are absolutely correct when you say the solution is for people to learn and I think we all can agree that history will not judge kindly 99.9% of the production coming out today.

Also, briefly with regards to the wearing of gold, it is widely accepted within Islamic jurisprudence that wearing gold ornaments is haram for men. However this prohibition is not very widely observed. Some probably due to ignorance, others because they don't care or think its not that big of a deal. Many dissemble, wearing "suasa" or some other alloy of gold or by offering some other excuse. I'm not judging them either way here but clearly this was a factor in how keris were traditionally decorated. Many traditional Southeast Asian texts reference sumptuary laws on the wearing of gold but these would have been predecated on the ruler's ability to enforce those norms. Naturally the use of gold embellishment would have evolved and changed over time and place, probably in more or less direct correlation to a ruler's power and position.