"Early" Moro kris

[Ian]

Thanks Gustav. Do you have any further information, pictures, or reference to that sword? I note a faint inscription on the pommel of the present example which appears to be in Arabic script. Unfortunately it seems much worn and too faint for a translation—perhaps one of our forumites might be able to read some of it.

[Ian]

Gustav,

Perhaps this is the one you recall. It is a distinguished Brunei kris made in 1842, according to the present owner. If this is the one that you recall, there are some differences, most of which are related to the ricikin.

a. The presence of an "arrow head" on this example, created by two grooves running alongside the sogokan and almost meeting at the top. That feature is absent on the sword in the original post.

b. The presence of a well defined point where the first luk on the back of the blade starts is present on this sword and not the other.

c. Well defined, unworn, greneng on the ganja only. This contrasts with the original post.

d. A convex face of the gandik. The face is concave on the first one.

e. The height of the sogokan appears shorter than on the original example.

Furthermore, the overall blade seems to have less tapering in width down its length than the first sword, with the width of the first luk being similar to the width of the last luk. Also, the central "pamor" section of the second blade does not appear to have grooves or a central ridge.

Lastly, there are obvious differences in the dress of these two, which probably does not tell us very much other than the dress of the second one is definitely Brunei in origin.

Ian.
.

[Gustav]

Ian,

surely that's a completely different Kris than one, which appeared with this description in the old UBB forum about 20 years ago.

[Ian]

Originally Posted by Gustav

... surely that's a completely different Kris than one, which appeared with this description in the old UBB forum about 20 years ago.

Unfortunately, the old UBB Forum is defunct and won't be resurrected.

[Ian]

Hi Gustav, did you get my PM from a week or so ago?

[Ian]

Xasterix has recently posted some excellent pictures from a Spanish auction here. I have looked through the Moro kris shown in those pictures, and there is one that stands out for me as likely to be older than the others based on its features resembling the Javanese keris.

Panoply A from the Xasterix post has been copied below with the swords labeled. Number A-11 appears to be the oldest one shown in these pictures. It has many features seen on the "modern Javanese kris" which I mentioned above. In addition, the gandik is unusually tall for a Moro kris, more in keeping with some old keris, such as the 16th C keris I have referred to before.

In my continuing search for "early" Moro kris, this one may have the most features in common with the Javanese keris. Interestingly, this one does not have an asang asang, and may never have had one (although the quality of the blown up pictures make it hard to tell if there was one originally).

Seeing A-11 displayed with much larger, heavier, and (probably) more recent kris, with notably wider and longer blades, suggests to me that A-11 is a good candidate for a progenitor of the "modern Moro kris." I would place it earlier than 1800, and perhaps much earlier.

.

[Rick]

Another A-11

18 inch blade
handle (whale's tooth pommel) 4 and seven eighths inches

LOA 22 and seven eighths inches.