SOLO KRATON KERIS AUCTIONED / GIFT FROM JAVANESE ROYALS TO DUTCH BANKER

Battara · 7th August 2016, 02:43 AM

I maybe wrong, but it doesn't look royal to me.

Jean · 7th August 2016, 08:51 AM

May be the Dutch banker was an usurer or a crook?

The name seems to be written on the mendak and the selut is recent and of poor quality.
Regards

A. G. Maisey · 7th August 2016, 12:39 PM

Good story.

In respect of "Royal" keris.

During the 1980's I saw and handled a number of keris that were indisputably "Royal" keris. They were held in the store rooms of the Surakarta Kraton and were keris that had been gifted to kraton officials, and to previous Susuhunans, and keris that had been made on order from the Kraton. In most cases these were very ordinary keris.

A Javanese "Royal" keris does not need to be super great to be legitimate.

This keris shown may well have spent time in a Kraton storeroom.

However, the dress is very, very pedestrian quality and the keris itself is poorly matched to the dress.

Again, this poor presentation is not at all unusual for something coming from the Surakarta Kraton. There are more than a few examples of very, very ordinary keris floating around, some of which are very famous ( and have been for a long time), are in museums, or during the 20th century were given to visiting heads of state and politicians.

I was once offered a keris that had been presented to a former Australian Prime Minister, not by a kraton, but by (I guess) a representative of the Indonesian Government. It was one notch above rubbish. Probably a good indication of how much respect that particular Aussie PM got from Jakarta.

Just because a keris has been presented to somebody, by somebody, it does not mean that its value is any more than the sum value of its individual parts.

Jean · 7th August 2016, 01:24 PM

Hello Alan,
Thank you for the interesting story & analysis, I agree that the blade is quite good but do you think that the ganja wulung is original or not? (difficult to assess from a picture of course).
Regards

A. G. Maisey · 7th August 2016, 02:29 PM

I don't like guessing Jean, but really, whether it is, or is not the very first gonjo fitted to the blade is not relevant in my opinion.

A keris can, and does, sometimes lose its gonjo often for culturally related reasons.

It is important that the gonjo be replaced competently.

It is unimportant that is has been replaced.

Think about it like this:- the blade is male : the gonjo is female, just as the wrongko is female : the male wilah is mated to the female elements of the complete keris and when all are together we have a societal symbol of the unity of male and female, just as a married man & woman are together representative of the required unity that makes a whole: man cannot be complete without woman, woman cannot be complete without man. Now, in the human man/woman unity if one part dies, it should be replaced so that the remaining part can once again be complete. In traditional thought, a woman should not continue to exist as a part of a community after the death of her husband, but if she removes herself from the community, or in later times takes a new husband, the unity is restored and the community is once again in balance. If the community is in balance, the danger to the cosmos of a state of non-balance is avoided.

The whole thing is really very simple. It is just a matter of understanding what the keris really is.

Frankly, I don't think this is much of a blade from the artistic perspective, its just a keris, nothing special, not bad, not good. But it is a keris, and if thought about in a cultural/societal context the important thing is that it does have a gonjo and that gonjo is suited to the wilah.

Rick · 7th August 2016, 10:50 PM

Willem,
Was there anything tangible to link this keris to a particular person?
An old photograph?
Perhaps a letter mentioning the occasion?

asomotif · 7th August 2016, 11:14 PM

Hello Rick,

The seller claims that the keris comes from the granddaughter of this banker.
Here is the link to the Original listing :

http://veiling.catawiki.nl/kavels/68...-java-indonesi

We are not discussing prices here, but If you check the link, you will see that Alan's rule does not apply here :

Quote:

Just because a keris has been presented to somebody, by somebody, it does not mean that its value is any more than the sum value of its individual parts.

My questions regarding this keris are the following.
- the red fabric in the center of the pendok is described as a proof of high status. Is this true ?
- The pendokok/mendak has a name in it, but the technique used does not look like an indonesian way of working to me.
- The selut seems very recent to me.
- The "royal" family crest on the back of the keris. Is this a know decoration ?

Best regards,
Willem

kino · 13th August 2016, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

A keris can, and does, sometimes lose its gonjo often for culturally related reasons.

What are the cultural reasons that a keris would loose it's gonjo?

A keris that is forged without a separate gonjo, what completes the blade, a scabbard?

A. G. Maisey · 14th August 2016, 12:42 AM

The most usual reason that a keris will lose its gonjo is in the case where an heirloom keris needs to be passed to more than one person. In such a case, the original gonjo is incorporated into the body of a new keris.

Usually only one new keris is made, but I have heard of a gonjo being incorporated into more than one new keris. In such a case the whole gonjo is incorporated into a single base forging which is then split into two or more forgings to to make the number of new keris required. The heirloom keris receives a new gonjo.

Then there is the situation where a keris needs to have its geometry altered to prioritise a dress requirement.

A gonjo that has been damaged either by accident or by time will commonly be replaced, this is regarded as keris maintenance. To many people the keris is a living entity, it needs to be taken care of as is any living entity.

Many, if not most, instances where a kinatah motif was awarded involved the making of a new gonjo.

Sultan Agung decreed that nobody in his realm could wear a keris with a pamor gonjo. All existing keris at that time needed to have a new gonjo fitted.

When we think about the keris, we need to think of it in terms that can relate to a man. A man can legitimately have many women, many wives. A woman can legitimately have only one man, one husband. From the man's perspective, the woman is replaceable, but if a woman is replaced, then her replacement needs to be in harmony with her husband, if she is not, the man gets rid of her.

Javanese symbolism is multi symbolism:- the same thing can be interpreted in many ways, depending on context.

Thus the keris is symbolic of the man, the family, the kin group, the ancestors, the community, the Kingdom, the Ruler, the Gunungan, the Meru and of Siwa.

The wilah is purely masculine and is the keris, but when paired with the gonjo and considered as such it becomes the keris as symbolic of the human situation where the symbolism has moved from singularity to duality, that is, not only the masculine singular, but the complete foundation stone of society:- man + woman, one cannot exist without the other.

However, even when the wilah is paired with the gonjo, it requires a warangka (wrongko, scabbard) in order to fully symbolise the other societally based things, because the nature of the warangka is feminine and family and community require both male and female to produce family. This is not to say that the wilah + gonjo cannot fulfil the symbolic roles associated with family and community, but when coupled with the warangka that symbolism is strengthened.

In its role as symbolic of the Gunungan, the Meru, and of Siwa, the wilah can fulfil this role without the inclusion of the warangka.

So, when we think of the keris, the one component that is indispensable is the wilah, if we add the gonjo we gain a little more, if we add the warangka we gain more again.

Where a wilah has been made in such a way that the gonjo is forged as a part of the blade what we are looking at is the permanent unification of male and female.

Some symbolism associated with the keris was present from the time that the Keris Buda appeared, other symbolism has developed over time. The important thing to be aware of is that the keris is a culturally powerful icon that is loaded with symbolism, and we cannot begin to understand that icon unless we take the symbolism into account.

7th August 2016, 08:51 AM	#2
Jean Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,740	May be the Dutch banker was an usurer or a crook? The name seems to be written on the mendak and the selut is recent and of poor quality. Regards Last edited by Jean; 7th August 2016 at 09:22 AM.

7th August 2016, 02:43 AM	#1
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,280	I maybe wrong, but it doesn't look royal to me.

7th August 2016, 12:39 PM	#3
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	Good story. In respect of "Royal" keris. During the 1980's I saw and handled a number of keris that were indisputably "Royal" keris. They were held in the store rooms of the Surakarta Kraton and were keris that had been gifted to kraton officials, and to previous Susuhunans, and keris that had been made on order from the Kraton. In most cases these were very ordinary keris. A Javanese "Royal" keris does not need to be super great to be legitimate. This keris shown may well have spent time in a Kraton storeroom. However, the dress is very, very pedestrian quality and the keris itself is poorly matched to the dress. Again, this poor presentation is not at all unusual for something coming from the Surakarta Kraton. There are more than a few examples of very, very ordinary keris floating around, some of which are very famous ( and have been for a long time), are in museums, or during the 20th century were given to visiting heads of state and politicians. I was once offered a keris that had been presented to a former Australian Prime Minister, not by a kraton, but by (I guess) a representative of the Indonesian Government. It was one notch above rubbish. Probably a good indication of how much respect that particular Aussie PM got from Jakarta. Just because a keris has been presented to somebody, by somebody, it does not mean that its value is any more than the sum value of its individual parts.

7th August 2016, 01:24 PM	#4
Jean Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,740	Hello Alan, Thank you for the interesting story & analysis, I agree that the blade is quite good but do you think that the ganja wulung is original or not? (difficult to assess from a picture of course). Regards

7th August 2016, 02:29 PM	#5
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	I don't like guessing Jean, but really, whether it is, or is not the very first gonjo fitted to the blade is not relevant in my opinion. A keris can, and does, sometimes lose its gonjo often for culturally related reasons. It is important that the gonjo be replaced competently. It is unimportant that is has been replaced. Think about it like this:- the blade is male : the gonjo is female, just as the wrongko is female : the male wilah is mated to the female elements of the complete keris and when all are together we have a societal symbol of the unity of male and female, just as a married man & woman are together representative of the required unity that makes a whole: man cannot be complete without woman, woman cannot be complete without man. Now, in the human man/woman unity if one part dies, it should be replaced so that the remaining part can once again be complete. In traditional thought, a woman should not continue to exist as a part of a community after the death of her husband, but if she removes herself from the community, or in later times takes a new husband, the unity is restored and the community is once again in balance. If the community is in balance, the danger to the cosmos of a state of non-balance is avoided. The whole thing is really very simple. It is just a matter of understanding what the keris really is. Frankly, I don't think this is much of a blade from the artistic perspective, its just a keris, nothing special, not bad, not good. But it is a keris, and if thought about in a cultural/societal context the important thing is that it does have a gonjo and that gonjo is suited to the wilah.

7th August 2016, 10:50 PM	#6
Rick Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,339	Willem, Was there anything tangible to link this keris to a particular person? An old photograph? Perhaps a letter mentioning the occasion?

14th August 2016, 12:42 AM	#9
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	The most usual reason that a keris will lose its gonjo is in the case where an heirloom keris needs to be passed to more than one person. In such a case, the original gonjo is incorporated into the body of a new keris. Usually only one new keris is made, but I have heard of a gonjo being incorporated into more than one new keris. In such a case the whole gonjo is incorporated into a single base forging which is then split into two or more forgings to to make the number of new keris required. The heirloom keris receives a new gonjo. Then there is the situation where a keris needs to have its geometry altered to prioritise a dress requirement. A gonjo that has been damaged either by accident or by time will commonly be replaced, this is regarded as keris maintenance. To many people the keris is a living entity, it needs to be taken care of as is any living entity. Many, if not most, instances where a kinatah motif was awarded involved the making of a new gonjo. Sultan Agung decreed that nobody in his realm could wear a keris with a pamor gonjo. All existing keris at that time needed to have a new gonjo fitted. When we think about the keris, we need to think of it in terms that can relate to a man. A man can legitimately have many women, many wives. A woman can legitimately have only one man, one husband. From the man's perspective, the woman is replaceable, but if a woman is replaced, then her replacement needs to be in harmony with her husband, if she is not, the man gets rid of her. Javanese symbolism is multi symbolism:- the same thing can be interpreted in many ways, depending on context. Thus the keris is symbolic of the man, the family, the kin group, the ancestors, the community, the Kingdom, the Ruler, the Gunungan, the Meru and of Siwa. The wilah is purely masculine and is the keris, but when paired with the gonjo and considered as such it becomes the keris as symbolic of the human situation where the symbolism has moved from singularity to duality, that is, not only the masculine singular, but the complete foundation stone of society:- man + woman, one cannot exist without the other. However, even when the wilah is paired with the gonjo, it requires a warangka (wrongko, scabbard) in order to fully symbolise the other societally based things, because the nature of the warangka is feminine and family and community require both male and female to produce family. This is not to say that the wilah + gonjo cannot fulfil the symbolic roles associated with family and community, but when coupled with the warangka that symbolism is strengthened. In its role as symbolic of the Gunungan, the Meru, and of Siwa, the wilah can fulfil this role without the inclusion of the warangka. So, when we think of the keris, the one component that is indispensable is the wilah, if we add the gonjo we gain a little more, if we add the warangka we gain more again. Where a wilah has been made in such a way that the gonjo is forged as a part of the blade what we are looking at is the permanent unification of male and female. Some symbolism associated with the keris was present from the time that the Keris Buda appeared, other symbolism has developed over time. The important thing to be aware of is that the keris is a culturally powerful icon that is loaded with symbolism, and we cannot begin to understand that icon unless we take the symbolism into account.