First post: A Balinese Keris

[A. G. Maisey]

Milandro, although sunggingan used on keris dress is relatively uncommon in genuine Balinese work, it is not at all uncommon in Javanese keris dress, & also in keris dress that follows the style of various regions, but is produced in East Jawa for the collector market, both local & international.

In sunggingan work used on keris dress, and that has characters included in the design, those characters are usually drawn from myth & legend, say from the wayang, or from the great religious texts and sagas & sometimes from indigenous belief.

In some situations the colours used in the sunggingan work can have a meaning, that meaning being an indicator of hierarchical status in a defined sphere.

In other situations, both the colour scheme and the ornamentation itself has no meaning other than pure artistic ornamentation.

In a situation where meaning is intended, the complete keris is suitable for wear within the relevant society, where it serves the purpose of a status indicator.

The dress used for your keris has been carved in an authentic style, the hilt is a totogan, the scabbard is batun poh form, relief carving on a scabbard is uncommon in old keris, but has become more frequently seen in both keris prepared for local use in Bali, and in keris prepared for the collector market.

The unusual element in your keris is the use of very non-typical sunggingan work.

There are definitely some questions circling around this keris, but they are questions that could only be answered by a person with long experience in the field, and with the keris in hand, photos only ever tell a part of the story.