Origine of 2 Bugis kriss with nice carved hilt.

Athanase · 18th July 2017, 08:34 PM

Hello,

Here is a very recent find: 2 Keris Bugis with very pretty carved hilt.

One of the Keris has a straight blade (but a bit thinner than the other blade I have of this type). The wood of the scabbard seems of good quality but the buntut is missing and has been replaced by an iron cage.

The second Keris, with a pretty wavy blade with a snake engraved on it. The engraving seems to have been made at the same time as the blade.
The scabbard is made in lesser quality wood but it was carved of floral pattern then lacquered.

I wanted to know if the motifs on the handle and decoration of the second Keris could allow to give a precise origin?
For me it is very difficult to recognize the different provenances of the bugis keris.

Athanase · 18th July 2017, 08:35 PM

the second keris :

Gustav · 28th July 2017, 12:23 PM

Two exceptionally nice hilts, both Buginese, first one from Celebes, not so sure about the second one.

The sheath of the first one is Bugis from Sulawesi, blade is a strange one. Perhaps a strongly reshaped (the reduced thickness speaks for it) Javanese from North-West coast.

The sheath and blade of the second one are Northern Malay, Pattani or most likely Kelantan. The carvings on scabbard and blade (a Pandai Saras blade) are perhaps older, but not original.

Athanase · 4th August 2017, 12:09 PM

Thank you very much Gustav for your very informative answer.

Johan van Zyl · 5th August 2017, 10:50 AM

Are those hilts made of wood?

Athanase · 5th August 2017, 02:02 PM

Wood

Gustav · 5th August 2017, 02:06 PM

The first one has on pictures almost an appearance of a light, better quality horn.

Athanase · 5th August 2017, 02:52 PM

I looked at the 2-3 places where it has all the small breaks and it has a lighter color with fibers that look much more like wood than horn.
The handle is not translucent to the light as with horn.

18th July 2017, 08:34 PM	#1
Athanase Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Paris (France) Posts: 408	Origine of 2 Bugis kriss with nice carved hilt. Hello, Here is a very recent find: 2 Keris Bugis with very pretty carved hilt. One of the Keris has a straight blade (but a bit thinner than the other blade I have of this type). The wood of the scabbard seems of good quality but the buntut is missing and has been replaced by an iron cage. The second Keris, with a pretty wavy blade with a snake engraved on it. The engraving seems to have been made at the same time as the blade. The scabbard is made in lesser quality wood but it was carved of floral pattern then lacquered. I wanted to know if the motifs on the handle and decoration of the second Keris could allow to give a precise origin? For me it is very difficult to recognize the different provenances of the bugis keris. Attached Images

18th July 2017, 08:35 PM	#2
Athanase Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Paris (France) Posts: 408	the second keris : Attached Images

28th July 2017, 12:23 PM	#3
Gustav Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,249	Two exceptionally nice hilts, both Buginese, first one from Celebes, not so sure about the second one. The sheath of the first one is Bugis from Sulawesi, blade is a strange one. Perhaps a strongly reshaped (the reduced thickness speaks for it) Javanese from North-West coast. The sheath and blade of the second one are Northern Malay, Pattani or most likely Kelantan. The carvings on scabbard and blade (a Pandai Saras blade) are perhaps older, but not original.

4th August 2017, 12:09 PM	#4
Athanase Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Paris (France) Posts: 408	Thank you very much Gustav for your very informative answer.

5th August 2017, 10:50 AM	#5
Johan van Zyl Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: I live in Gordon's Bay, a village in the Western Cape Province in South Africa. Posts: 126	Are those hilts made of wood?

5th August 2017, 02:02 PM	#6
Athanase Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Paris (France) Posts: 408	Wood

5th August 2017, 02:06 PM	#7
Gustav Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,249	The first one has on pictures almost an appearance of a light, better quality horn.

5th August 2017, 02:52 PM	#8
Athanase Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Paris (France) Posts: 408	I looked at the 2-3 places where it has all the small breaks and it has a lighter color with fibers that look much more like wood than horn. The handle is not translucent to the light as with horn.