Whoa ! Moro

[Rick]

Originally Posted by BluErf

The ivory pommel kris has an impressive and nice sor-soran, with well-defined greneng which looks like to be of a more uncommon form. The pommel itself shows a good level of sophistication judging from what's left of it, and the shallow grooves and lines on it. I noticed that the baca-baca looks old and very sturdy. Perhaps the seller knows of someone who can restore the lost crown on the kakatua pommel, and perhaps make a sheath for it. Maybe that explains why he would pay so much for it.

On another related subject - there has been a trend of person or persons who throw in irrationally high bids on kerises on ebay, and in some cases, not paying for the winning bids at all. This is not good. Hopefully the person or persons behind these irrational bidding would stop because it does not benefit anyone, including themselves.

Possibly Kai wee ; I find myself more impressed by the greneng on that blade ; at any rate it seems to be quality for sure and maybe the floor bidder could see a core pattern in the blade ... but even the part of the pommel that's left is damaged . One would be almost better off having an entirely new one carved . I shudder to think what that would cost .

From my experience most of the Moro kris available come out of the States because of the Span Am and Moro Wars . These two look to have had a hard life .

I always wonder what things would be like today if Gen'l Pershing's order had not been implemented .

As to the horse's rear end that has been playing games on ebay .. what a shame !
I wonder if it's another Dealer or a Prankster .

[ariel]

Or the seller....

[panday]

[panday]

Ebay bidding wars now a days is so extream, and it's getting worse day by day! you got'ta push your self sometimes to get what you want, otherwise, you'll get dust

When I bid, I make sure that I have the capacity to sustain that responsibility when it comes back at me, even to the max. As they say, good stuff are priceless! so eh! don't blame this guys if they want to add this priceless pieces on there collections. . . .blame the bug that bit them

[Spunjer]

yeah, i was watching the live auction on that one.

going back to the kris, is it even possible to fix the broken part of the pommel without it looking ovbious?

[nechesh]

You know, i think that the ivory pommel kris is a fine looking weapon even with the damage.....but i think i wouldn't be willing to pay more than half that price for it. If it were mine i don't think i would try to restore such damage. I think it would be really difficult to make it look right without the original piece.

[Rick]

Originally Posted by nechesh

You know, i think that the ivory pommel kris is a fine looking weapon even with the damage.....but i think i wouldn't be willing to pay more than half that price for it. If it were mine i don't think i would try to restore such damage. I think it would be really difficult to make it look right without the original piece.

I hear what you're saying Nechesh ; I might have paid $3-$400.00 for it but when I start to think that way this picture always pops into my mind .

[Ian]

Originally Posted by Spunjer

going back to the kris, is it even possible to fix the broken part of the pommel without it looking ovbious?

Battara might be able to give us some insight on this. But it looks a really difficult repair to me. To create a decent joint it would probably be necessary to trim more off what is left. Matching the grain of the new ivory with the old, and continuing the carved lines on the added piece would seem a major challenge. And new ivory would look odd on this old piece. A whole new ivory hilt would probably be necessary IMO. Finding an expert ivory carver for the old repair or a new piece would be a big challenge too.

[BluErf]

Originally Posted by Spunjer

yeah, i was watching the live auction on that one.

going back to the kris, is it even possible to fix the broken part of the pommel without it looking ovbious?

I think the repair will always be visible, it's only a matter of how obvious. I have seen incredibly good old repairs to wood and ivory in which the new piece fitted perfectly with the old piece, and the new piece was stained to closely match the original colour.

In my collection, I have an mid-period tajong (probably 18th century) which had suffered substantial damage to its buah pinang and one of its shoulders. One of its previous owner deemed it valuable enough to repair, and well-repaired it was. The shoulder portion was also carved to match the lines that was flowing from the main body. I think if you look intently, you can see where the repairs were.

[BluErf]

.