Need advice on this keris I got from eBay

A. G. Maisey · 1st September 2024, 01:11 PM

There are a number of ways that the gonjo of a keris is kept in place, one of those ways is to cut a tiny keyway into the gonjo hole, and drive a pin home into that keyway to hold the gonjo in place. If the gonjo has a weakness at the point where it surrounds the pesi, the tension created by the key will often cause a fracture in the gonjo. This flaw can be repaired by resetting the gonjo over the pesi with plastic steel.

In Jawa & other parts of Indonesia we just make a new gonjo. This is not a big job, but it can be tedious and in my experience most people living outside keris bearing societies are unwilling or unable to attempt it.

The wrongko is a typical low level East Jawa/Madura gayaman.

I'm uncertain about the correct name to apply to the hilt, there are a couple of choices & I have heard both applied to this form, in the absence of certainty I'd sooner not guess.

The manipulated piece of pamor in the sorsoran does look as if an attempt at lam alif(p) has been made, as Sirek has mentioned.

Dhapur is brojol ( no tikel alis).

It is a nice example of an "every man's" keris.

It would benefit from the fitting of a suitable mendak.

1st September 2024, 01:11 PM	#6
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,991	There are a number of ways that the gonjo of a keris is kept in place, one of those ways is to cut a tiny keyway into the gonjo hole, and drive a pin home into that keyway to hold the gonjo in place. If the gonjo has a weakness at the point where it surrounds the pesi, the tension created by the key will often cause a fracture in the gonjo. This flaw can be repaired by resetting the gonjo over the pesi with plastic steel. In Jawa & other parts of Indonesia we just make a new gonjo. This is not a big job, but it can be tedious and in my experience most people living outside keris bearing societies are unwilling or unable to attempt it. The wrongko is a typical low level East Jawa/Madura gayaman. I'm uncertain about the correct name to apply to the hilt, there are a couple of choices & I have heard both applied to this form, in the absence of certainty I'd sooner not guess. The manipulated piece of pamor in the sorsoran does look as if an attempt at lam alif(p) has been made, as Sirek has mentioned. Dhapur is brojol ( no tikel alis). It is a nice example of an "every man's" keris. It would benefit from the fitting of a suitable mendak.