Something worth a passing glance

[A. G. Maisey]

I am not much given to the show & tell thing, & I am not at all in favour of displaying any of my personal keris. However, this keris is about to go to a new home, and the pendok is one of the best that I have ever handled, it is the work of Pak Dayadi (Alm.) a formidable craftsman from Solo, who left us some years ago.

I have not seen work to rival this in many years.

I feel that this dress is worth a passing glance, perhaps a little more than this.

[A. G. Maisey]

Higher res pendok

[drdavid]

Amazing pendok Alan, thank you for showing. Should the iconography (5 claw dragon and Feng Hua) make us think this was made for someone prominent from a Chinese background
DrD

[A. G. Maisey]

No, not really, this is a late 20th Century Solonese pendok, the pattern books of the craftsmen who produce these works of art are full of motifs that come from many cultures. The execution of this particular pendok is vastly better than most examples that we might come across, but the actual motifs in this day & age are not exclusively Javanese.

[Green]

Interesting. But this Chinese motifs are not exactly an art in the original keris culture.By which I mean (currently Muslim Keris world of the nusantara) and even Hindu Bali? In fact I would hazard a guess that this is not typical and a one off.

I would be happy to be proven wrong and appreciate any explanation.

[A. G. Maisey]

The arts & crafts of both Jawa & Bali are influenced by other cultures. There are multiple examples of this. If we go back to the Central Javanese Classical period of around 600 to 1100CE, we find that at at that time Javanese art was influenced by Indian cultures, especially the Guptas.

In later times Chinese culture had extremely heavy influence on both Javanese & Balinese art. If we look at the Batik patterns of most especially the North Coast of Jawa what we find is both the use of Chinese motifs, and Javanese motifs that have been influenced by Chinese motifs. In Bali we again find that Chinese culture has permeated Balinese culture . A very good & well known example of this is the Barong dance.

European influence in Jawa has resulted in formal Javanese dress being a mixture of the indigenous sarung & the European waist length jacket. During the 19th century European influence so permeated the elite levels of Javanese society that by the time of Pakubuwana X the entire Karaton was following European style.

As for the idea of "--- original keris culture --- " it is undeniable that the people of any society own the culture that relates to that society, & in Jawa influences from outside the society have been accepted and adapted to Javanese use. At the present time it is almost impossible to separate elements of Javanese, & also Balinese, style that is absolutely indigenous to the the society & culture of Jawa & Bali, and that is not the result of the permeation of those societies & cultures by elements from outside the original society & culture. This gradual shaping of a culture & a society is an ongoing process:- the people who form the society own its related culture, & they decide what is a part of their culture & what is not.

In respect of this particular pendok, it is not a one off, I ordered it from the pattern book of Pak Dayadi. Over the time I knew this highly talented artist/craftsman I ordered other very high quality pendok from him also, & these were used on new, very high quality Kamardikan keris, some of the motifs would be recognizable as having their roots in indigenous Javanese motifs, for example, "sekar melati", however other motifs are undeniably European in origin, especially those that use grapes as the base motif, such as "sekar anggur" or "buah anggur". Other motifs might have the elements of the motif absolutely identifiable with Javanese roots, but then the execution of those elements will be in a style that is reminiscent of Chinese style, for example the "pring-pringan" motif.

What we are looking at with this particular pendok is an example of late 20th century Surakarta keris art that has been produced by one of the most highly respected and most talented Surakarta pendok artists of all time.

Yes, I agree, it is perhaps difficult to reconcile what can be seen in this pendok with what we usually see in a Javanese pendok, & this is quite simply because work of this level of excellence is almost never seen unless one has access to the elite artist/craftsmen of the World of the Keris, or perhaps people who might possess some of the work of these talented men.

[Green]

Totally understand what you are saying about how different outside cultures influence the indigenous art. But Java and Indonesia and the nusantara as a whole with the exception of Bali has been Muslim for many hundred years and Keris art has stabilised to a more Islamic way of looking at things although not entirely eschewing the older cultures particularly the use of naga motifs as naga has been a part of indigenous myth since the very beginning as well. However even naga motifs have the 'local look' instead of more chinese look as we(I) see in this particular example.

It is may be just me but I feel that this example has too Chinese look and does not really represent javanese or nusantara keris art.

[A. G. Maisey]

If you say so Green, but your perspective is perhaps not the perspective of the Javanese people:- they own their culture, & they decide what is a part of that culture.

As for Islam & Jawa, well, that has been a contentious matter for a very long time.

Keris art & the Islamic World view?

Yes, some influence, but in only some respects and in a very limited way.

In Jawa, and also in Bali, all things are understood in a Javanese way & in a Balinese way, and particularly where Islam is concerned, that way might not be in accord with the way in which things are understood in other parts of the Islamic world.

This does not just involve keris art, it involves the entire society of Jawa and of Bali. To understand the way in which these peoples see & understand the world around them, we need to at least try to adopt at least a similar way of seeing that world.

In fact, in Jawa, there is no "stabilisation" of keris art & most definitely not any general "stabilisation" that tends to an Islamic set of values.

If you do not like the motif used in this pendok, that opinion can be easily accepted if it offends your personal sense of values, but in Jawa & in Solo a great many people would have different opinions.

I'd guess that you would probably find the Batik motifs of Cirebon & Pekalongan unacceptable also.

[Green]

Fair statement Alan. I am a malay and certainly I have quite a different cultural background compared with the Javanese although we have many similarities as well. Malay and Javanese are quite different people in many ways although many would consider Javanese and Malay are essentially the same group of people while some others of more nationalistic bent vehemently claim that we are different races LOL.

But what I observe and historical events have amply showed that
Javanese are quite anti Chinese even to this day and it would be interesting if any Javanese in this group would comment what they think about the motif of this pendok.

[A. G. Maisey]

Whilst it is true that there are some genetic similarities between Malay & Javanese peoples, there are very great differences between Malay society as it exists in today's Malaysia, & Javanese society as it exists in today's Jawa.

It is also true that from the 19th century, when the Chinese were used by the Dutch as their managers, overseers, supervisors & hit men, the Javanese have, in general, harboured an intense dislike for the Chinese people living in Jawa, if we look at the historical contributions of the Chinese to Javanese & Balinese society & culture we find that much of what we now tend to regard as uniquely Javanese is in fact of Chinese origin.

Historically the Chinese have played an exceptionally important role in the development of Javanese art & culture. It is even possible that without the contribution of Chinese Muslims, Jawa might not be regarded as an Islamic state today.

In respect of the pendok, of course this motif is influenced by Chinese style, nobody can deny that, however, that Chinese style is now as much a part of Javanese art & culture as are the many other Chinese inspired motifs that are a part of Javanese art.

This discussion is in my opinion going nowhere, I made this photo of an exceptional piece of Javanese keris art available for public view to permit others to see what the best can look like, I did not make it available to open a discussion on whether Chinese influence can be found in Javanese art. This is a given, & it cannot be denied.

Similarly it cannot be denied that this Chinese influence can be seen in this piece of Javanese art work.

None the less, in the lexicon of Javanese art, Chinese inspired motifs do have a place and are legitimately identified as Javanese art at the present time.

I do acknowledge that not everybody might particularly like this motif, but I did not make it available to generate a poll on likes & dislikes, I made it available so that others may be able to see what superior craftsmanship looks like, and that is completely independent of personal likes & dislikes, it is something that must be an objective judgement.

[JustYS]

This high end templek pendok always amazed me, thank you for showing Alan.

Am I correct to guess the materials are silver and gold plated?

Also does the pendok motifs have a hierarchical rank like the pendok color? In a sense are there some motifs attributed to certain ranks?

Thank you.

[Gustav]

Superior craftmanship?

[A. G. Maisey]

Gustav, everything is relative:- we do not compare apples & oranges, there is no universal norm.

[SidJ]

Seeing Alan's Post and having dug this keris out after some years, is this pending of any special merit? Seems well made to my eyes but your thoughts would be appreciated.
Best Sid

[Anthony G.]

Originally Posted by drdavid

Amazing pendok Alan, thank you for showing. Should the iconography (5 claw dragon and Feng Hua) make us think this was made for someone prominent from a Chinese background
DrD

Dragons with five claws show the privilege of the emperor and the rest of royal family members. The rest of the population can only use dragons with four claws in their decorations.

[Rick]

Here's a pendok that shows some interesting open work with a red velvet cover beneath.
I stopped counting the stones mounted on it after a hundred or so.

[Ian]

Alan,

I am very grateful that you posted this beautiful example of Javanese metalwork. It is exquisitely executed and of a very high standard. It appears virtually flawless. The pendok reminds me of bas relief carving, with a 3-D appearance based on subtle layering of the objects.

On a similar note, I am delighted with the item that I purchased from you recently that also has excellent silver work.

These works of art are national treasures.

[Ian]

Rick,

Your example also looks to be from a master craftsman. The intricate designs and inlaid stones are wonderful. I'm thinking this work is akin to Hindu art, and it also reminds me of some of the Burmese carving seen on ivory hilts where these complex vegetative designs with animals (and gin) are present. Your pendok does not have the 3-D, bas relief treatment as seen in Alan's OP.

[Rick]

It is worth a 'passing glance' though Ian.

[A. G. Maisey]

Thank you for your comments Ian.

Yes, Rick's pendok is a very fine piece of work also.

The very best Javanese silver smiths have historically produced very fine work, much of the best of this Javanese work has come from the small town of Kota Gede, which is situated near to Ngayogyakarta/Yogyakarta/Jogjakarta and which was the location of the Mataram Sultanate, following the partition of Jawa by the Dutch in 1755.

Currently, a couple of the most highly regarded Kota Gede silver smiths produce work of exceptional quality on private order for churches & other public entities located in Europe & USA, they also produce work that bears false historical hallmarks and work that bears no marks at all & that is then marked by the European & other foreign dealers who have ordered it.

SIDJ has posted a photo of a Jogja pendok that bears a semen motif, this is typical of pendok work produced by the Jogjakarta school for sale through the local markets, it might have been made by a Kota Gede smith, but is more likely to have been made by a silver smith working in the Jogjakarta style, but located outside of Kota Gede. This pendok might be silver, or it might be mamas, an alloy that is similar to nickel silver, it would need to be tested to confirm that it is silver.

The images of the silver templek pendok that I posted, is the work of a man who was regarded by many knowledgeable Indonesian art connoisseurs as perhaps the best exponent of Surakarta pendok work who had ever lived, his name was Dayadi & he is no longer a part of the visible world.

As I remarked in my post #13, when we try to appraise the excellence or otherwise of this type of work --- & I guess any type of art/craft work --- we need to make our appraisal against the background of the relevant era & school, there is no universal standard, and there are no universal parameters, that can be applied to all work, no matter from what era & what geographic location.

But the very best of Central Javanese silver work, both Kota Gede school, & Surakarta school, has always been able to be compared favourably with the best silver work from anywhere in the world, something that is beyond argument if we consider the quantity of falsely marked silver work that has had its origin in Kota Gede & that has been sold on the world market for a very long time.

[SidJ]

Thanks Alan, the keris I posted above was one of yours that I bought a couple of years ago.

[SidJ]

And on the motif I thought it was a bird or eel! Semen was the last thing on my mind but what if any does it stand for and is it commonly seen on keris? I guess it's a male Shiva Lingam power thing?

[A. G. Maisey]

I thought it might have come from me, but I usually rely on memory with this sort of thing --- ie, what i once had & no longer do have --- & my memory banks are over-full, so I tend to forget things. However, if i said it was silver when I passed it to you, it is silver, I always test before I say someting is silver, its too easy to make a mistake.

As to the motif. The word "semen" comes from "semi", it is the same root that gives us the "tunggak semi" planar jejeran/pegangan style, "semi" means to sprout, to blossom, to form a bud, the idea is representative of new life, a new start.

In olden times the semen class of batik motifs were the prerogative of royalty.

There are a lot of semen motifs and they can include a lot of sub-motifs, in your pendok the boomerang type things are supposedly representative of a tiered garden, but we can also see birds, a suggestion of serpents and foliage, the fan-like motif at the top of the pendok is supposedly representative of a peacock.

I'm not expert in the reading of these motifs, and I rely to a large extent on two sources:- batik pattern books & the opinions of people who know vastly more than I do about Javanese art motifs.

[jagabuwana]

Beautiful stuff. Thank you for sharing with us, Alan.

[SidJ]

Thanks Alan,

Stupid question but is there any link or association between the keris and the pending pattern? Complementary in some way? Or no connection at all?

[SidJ]

Pendok

[A. G. Maisey]

No Sid, not really any cultural connection.

If we look at old examples of Javanese pendok we find most of them are quite plain. The ethic is, and has been for a long time, that it is best to hide the nature of one's keris from the sight of others. If the characteristics of the keris itself are known, those characteristics can be used against the possessor of the keris. In various places & at various times, the gonjo of the keris was made without pamor, & the underlying reason for this was to effectively seal the nature of the keris from the knowledge of other people.

However, a pendok can carry a message, & that message is not linked to the keris itself, but rather to the possessor or wearer of the keris. In kraton society the sunggingan pendoks are colour coded to show the rank of the wearer.

Traditional motifs can be read in the same way that those motifs are understood in batiks & other decorative arts. In some cases a pendok might carry a motif that relates to the wearer's character or profession, for example, in Bali a dancer might have a pendok with a dancer embossed on it.

However, I believe that in most cases the pendok fitted to a keris is simply one that the person who fitted it believes is a harmonious combination with the rest of the dress.

[SidJ]

Thanks Alan,
I am grateful for your thoughts.
Best
Sid