Palembang keris?

[PeterP]

Dear forum members, this is one of my latest flea market finds, a rather nice, I presume, Palembang keris. I think a nice one, it's big, the blade is 43 cm (without peksi) and in total 55.5 cm, and, as far as I can judge, it still retains it's original polish and wash. It's smooth, razor sharp, and no signs of any later warangan treatments, otherwise the smoothness would have been lost. The seller told me it came from an Indonesian family who came to Holland in the early twenties.
My questions are, is this a true palembang keris, or is it a blade from another origin combined with a Palembang dress. Next question is, during it's life it had a small accident. It probably fell, and as a result the ganja is askew. It doesn't fit in the scabbard anymore, which is a pity because if I follow the contours it would be a perfect fit. Does anybody has an idea how to get the ganja back in position without damaging anything. Last question. There is some rust. I know i can remove it by using vinegar, or lime juice, or anything mildly acidic, but then I would loose the wash and the polish. As I think it's a survivor, never been treated after it's production, I think it would be a shame to loose that. But that's me, others may think different. But is there a way to clean the blade without losing the finish?

[David R]

Wow, what a find!

[kai]

Hello Peter,

Thanks for posting - one of the moderators will shove this thread over to the keris forum, no worries.

Yes, I believe this a Palembang blade - nice one! The fittings could also originate from Lampung or the hinterlands.

I don't see the problem with the gonjo. Is it bent sideways?

Regarding rust removal, I'd first try local treatment. For superficial rust, repeated soaking with weapon oil and rubbing may be sufficient (gentle work with very fine steel wool is usually safe). Some patches visible on this blade may likely be more stubborn - more invasive treatment will likely remove the stain locally which may be feasible fix cosmetically if needed.

Regards,
Kai

[A. G. Maisey]

A classic piece, very nice indeed.

It has probably been cleaned and stained a number of times, & if it were mine I would clean & stain it again now, but if you do not have the necessary experience and you do not have access to lab. quality arsenic, it probably best to give it repeated oil soaks and using magnification & a sharp pick, mechanically remove as much rust as possible. This oil & pick method works well, I cleaned a couple of Bali keris in this way around 50 years ago, & they are still excellent today. Took me a long time.

The gonjo is a pressure fit, it could be held in place with a tiny wedge driven down between tang and gonjo, or it could be held in place by tightening with a punch around the tang hole, either way it is a mechanical fit.

Using alloy jaw liners in a vice to hold the blade --- or just folded news paper, the tang can be tapped back into position. I use a jeweler's hammer for this, or you can use a punch & and a larger hammer. Sometimes the gonjo might rise up a bit, but again, it can be tapped back into position. This gonjo out of a alignment thing is pretty common, it can be considered to be normal maintenance. Best to use a punch & hammer to tighten the fit again when the gonjo is back in place. When you have the blade in the vice it is best to use your left hand over the top of the gonjo tail & gripping the blade, to hold it firmly and get feedback on what is happening.

Stylistically these Palembang keris are copies of Central Javanese keris, there were strong political ties between the Central Javanese kingdoms & the South Sumatera kingdoms.

[David]

Nice flea market find! That usually means you got a good deal too.
Yes, as Alan stated, this is classic Palembang and a pretty nice example. I would follow Alan's advice to fix the problems. It would be nice to restain this one if you have the skills and i think it would look very nice in full stain.
From the look of the tarnish on the selut i suspect it might actually be silver. If it were mine i would hit it with a jeweler's sliver polishing cloth and clean it up. Silver fittings are intended to shine.

[A. G. Maisey]

I strongly suspect that this had a pendok in the past, & that it was likely to have been suasa (low content gold alloy).

It was most likely without any motif.

[David]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

I strongly suspect that this had a pendok in the past, & that it was likely to have been suasa (low content gold alloy).

It was most likely without any motif.

Not that i doubt it, but that's pretty specific. How did you come to that suspicion?

[PeterP]

Thanks for the advice, I'll give the gonjo realignment a try. It's only a little bit, but just enough to prevent the blade to be inserted all the way.
When I found the kerisses on the market I couldn't believe my luck. Probably could have bargained harder but I just wanted to do a quick getaway with the loot. It's not unique to find a keris on a fleamarket in Holland, but this quality is rare, and also for this price. Comparable to about ten good takeaway pizza's for two nice palembang kerisses, a sewar and three badeks. I think I had a pretty sweet deal..
I also wondered about a possible pendok. The quality of the wood of the sheath is not on par with the rest of the keris, pretty rough timber, while the grip and the wranka are of a very nice wood. I'll be on the lookout for a pendok, but hat's probably pushing my luck. Especially with the size of the keris, never seen a palembang one as big as this one, so finding a fitting pendok will be a challenge.
About the rust, I cleaned a few blades with pineapple/lime juice and that always resulted in a very porous and rough-ish surface. This blade has such a nice polish, a shame to loose that. I think I'll try the soak and needle method first.

[kai]

I strongly suspect that this had a pendok in the past, & that it was likely to have been suasa (low content gold alloy).

It was most likely without any motif.

I beg to differ, Alan:

Yes, this would be the Palembang standard for high-end keris.

However, the selut is from silver and of an average quality. For a suasa pendok, I would expect a selut in gold.

The scabbard wood could use some TLC - it's probably of decent quality (commonly without pendok for most keris Palembang).

Regards,
Kai