Mendak

[A. G. Maisey]

But there is a reason for those cheapy mendak Willem.

A good brand new mendak can cost more than a pretty reasonable sort of keris.

A good old mendak can cost more than a decent keris.

It wasn't always like this, but it is now.

If somebody in the keris trade in Indonesia wants to sell a good keris, and by keris, I mean the keris itself, not including the dress, they limit their buyers by dressing that keris in premium component parts, so they either sell the blade bare, or use cheap, low quality dress.

This permits the new owner to dress the keris as he sees fit. However, if he wishes to use older dress on the old keris, he may take quite some time to assemble the quality parts he needs, and one of the more difficult parts is the mendak.

[ariel]

What kind of mendak would fit a Pathani Tajong with a Swaasa cover for the "nose"?
Are those available? How much would they cost?

[David]

Originally Posted by ariel

What kind of mendak would fit a Pathani Tajong with a Swaasa cover for the "nose"?
Are those available? How much would they cost?

AFAIK most keris tajong don't really have a mendak. Some have something more similar to a selut around the base of the hilt and some closer to what i would call a pendokok or hilt cup. I also have seen many with nothing at all between the hilt and blade.
I'd prefer to keep specific discussion of the cost of things off the boards.

[ariel]

Alan repeatedly mentioned high prices of old mendaks.

I just asked him to elaborate on the already expressed qualitative view by adding some quantification.

Nobody here is buying or selling anything specific; we are talking about generalities. Something along the lines: a Swaasa pendokok may cost between $ 200 - 1000. Nothing more.

[A. G. Maisey]

Ariel, I'm talking about mendak, not Balinese wewer nor Peninsula pendongkok.

As with all things prices depend upon who is buying and who is selling, where the transaction takes place and at what market level one buys:- a collector in London or New York will pay more than a market retailer who sells in Central Jawa.

[David]

Originally Posted by ariel

Nobody here is buying or selling anything specific; we are talking about generalities. Something along the lines: a Swaasa pendokok may cost between $ 200 - 1000. Nothing more.

As Alan points out Ariel, this thread is about old Javanese mendaks, not swaasa pendokoks. In the keris world these are apples and oranges. There is no one price range for anything that fits between the hilt and blade of every type of keris in all of Indonesia. The culture of collectors of Javanese keris is not the same as it is for Peninsula keris. A swaasa pendokok for a keris tajong will cost whatever the market will bare and will be determined by a number of factors, including, but not limited to the price of gold at the moment (and the weight of the actual pendokok), the level of craft of the part and the rarity or antiquity of that particular pendokok. However, I would still prefer that we keep discussion of the specific cost of such things off the forum. It is a simple request.

[Paul B.]

Pick up this old topic to introduce a genuine old mendak.
Unsure about the material. Could either be ivory (no schraeger lines spotted) or deer / antler? Small repair needed at the bottom where a chip was broken off. Very white dense from the inside.
Any suggestion about it and which handle (Solo / Djogja or even Madura) is best to combine?

[David]

I doesn't look like ivory Paul. Could be bone or antler. Could even be resin from the looks of it. Is there a thick layer of shellac over it?