Keris for ID

[dbhmgb]

Originally Posted by Gustav

Dear Henk,

may I turn your attention to this thread:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...on+hilt+keris?

Gustav,

Thank you for pointing to that most interesting and educational thread!

Dan

[Sajen]

Beautiful keris most probable Sumatra Riau Bugis type. Top cross piece from the sheath are from kemuning wood and stem from angsana wood IMHO.
Agree with Gustav about the turn of the handle. Have handled as well some Bugis type keris where the handle was fixed in this position.

[Shimmerxxx]

Thanks for the feedback all.

Does anyone have a feel for the age of this item? I have seen a similar example of the form dating from the early 20th Century so that would be my best guess.

[kai]

Does anyone have a feel for the age of this item? I have seen a similar example of the form dating from the early 20th Century so that would be my best guess.

Could you post a pic of the example you're referring to, please?

(I reckon that for the blade 19th c. might be also a reasonable guess.)

Regards,
Kai

[Gustav]

When we are moving outside of Java with it's Tangguh system (which actually also isn't an age estimation system), the age estimation becomes more and more subjective (will say without a firm ground).

I feel, regarding this blade, age (19. or beginning of 20.cent) doesn't influence the value much. If we are looking to keris, quality in most cases an average western collector comes in touch is more important then age.

[Shimmerxxx]

Originally Posted by kai

Could you post a pic of the example you're referring to, please?

(I reckon that for the blade 19th c. might be also a reasonable guess.)

Regards,
Kai

Of course, here's the example which I felt looks similar to the in the original post.

I have posted the link to the site this is shown on in one of my earlier posts above.

By the way, the dealer gave me full permission to post the photos here and asked if I could find out the age for him since Eastern weapons are outside his area of expertise.

[kai]

Of course, here's the example which I felt looks similar to the in the original post.

I have posted the link to the site this is shown on in one of my earlier posts above.

Thanks, I overlooked that post (moderation, I guess); good to have pics uploaded though for later reference since links will go dead sooner or later.

Even if the suggested dating of this second keris could be substantiated, I don't think them to be similar enough to base a dating for the first keris on. BTW, while I don't neccessarily disagree with the dating in the given example, I would very much caution against taking estimated age of keris on most, if not just about all, websites/books for granted.

I'm with Gustav - it doesn't really matter wether this keris blade is antique or vintage (or wether the fittings may be a bit later since these get replaced fairly regularly while a keris is being worn in a tropical climate).

Regards,
Kai

[Shimmerxxx]

Thanks Kai, I'm learning a lot from knowledgeable fellows such as yourself!