Another Moro Jungayyan Kriss

[CharlesS]

Recently I traded for a Moro kriss and kampillan. The kampillan will appear in a separate thread.

Here is the nice jungayyan kriss. The piece is in remarkable condition and was stunning after a mild clean up. The bolster to the pommel is real silver, as is the scabbard ring. You can see in the last pic that the original scabbard had been meticulously carved with channels to incorporate a rattan binding. This clever work left the rattan less exposed, and less likely to get broken. It was all gone when I got it, so I restored the rattan myself.

Nice to find one in such good shape and well cared for!

Dimensions:

Overall length: 29in.
Blade length: 22in.
Blade width at mid point: 1.5in.
Pommel length from top to bottom: 7in.

[Sajen]

Wow, what a beautiful Sulu kris! And very well done restoration! Congrats for both!

Best,
Detlef

[kai]

Hello Charles,

Thanks for posting! Looks like a nice Sulu ensemble - the angle makes examining the base of the blade a bit tough though.

You can see in the last pic that the original scabbard had been meticulously carved with channels to incorporate a rattan binding. This clever work left the rattan less exposed, and less likely to get broken. It was all gone when I got it, so I restored the rattan myself.

What type of wood is this scabbard made of - very hard like banati or more medium hardness with higher resilience like narra?

Assuming that the scabbard is original to the blade and not a relatively recent replacement, I don't think that rattan binding looks en suite IMHO; I also can't remember such carved channels - if this were to help significantly, I'd expect this to show up more regularly (replacing failing rattan binding is not a big issue in a rural setting, anyway).

I do wonder whether this scabbard wasn't decorated with twisted (or possibly even braided) silver wire? Especially, if made from high quality wood!


BTW, Charles, you are showing so many exceptional pieces: I'd love to see your pics with an increased resolution for really being able to appreciate more details!

Regards,
Kai

[CharlesS]

The wood here appears to be banati.

Part of the 'off putting' nature of the scabbard is that it was previously lacquered and I did not want to chance stripping the lacquer and not be assured of the result. Instead, I waxed it to create a more uniform appearance.

I agree that scabbards carved in the manner are unusual, and there is no reason to believe this one was not "born with" the blade. When I got it there was not any indication of anything that held it together except two narrow 'shadows' where you see the horizontal wrap now. That is another reason I proceeded as I did.

Wire is a possibility but would have been far more likely to have left a residue of some sort, or especially indentions where it was wrapped horizontially.

[F. de Luzon]

Nice Moro kris, CharlesS! Are the channels carved into the scabbard? A furniture manufacturer once told me that when they export wooden furniture from the Philippines by sea, sometimes the wood expands so much that nails become loose. Could wood expansion have caused the indentations? Rattan does not break easily.

Fernando

[mariusgmioc]

Originally Posted by F. de Luzon

Nice Moro kris, CharlesS! Are the channels carved into the scabbard? A furniture manufacturer once told me that when they export wooden furniture from the Philippines by sea, sometimes the wood expands so much that nails become loose. Could wood expansion have caused the indentations? Rattan does not break easily.

Fernando

Nice kris indeed!

But regarding your question, I doubt that the wood can be so easily inprinted. While the cannels are quite narrow, they have significant length, and I assume there must be tremendous forces to be able to inprint such channels. And while the rattan may withstand such forces, the wood would most certainly crack and break, long before being inprinted with che channels.

Just my idea...

[CharlesS]

Yes, the channels are most definitely carved.

Thanks for your interest and comments.