The Hilt is Loose
Hi All,
I got the hilt loose. The round tang hole was tapered to fit a keris tang, so the hilt appears to have been deliberately made for a keris. The hole is a hair less than 3” (7.62cm) deep . The kris tang measures 2-11/16” (6.82625cm) long and is 23/64” (9.118mm) in diameter at the base. When I took the hilt off, I found some écru colored thread wrapped around the end of the tang, so whoever mounted the hilt had some knowledge of how kris hilts are affixed. The oval shaped, brass selut is plain save for a rim at the top. There is also a brass ring below the selut that may have been soldered to it at one time but is now separate. The brass ring had the same orange pigment found in the blade fuller and some of that pigment was on the top of the ganja right around the ring. Why anyone, with enough knowledge to fit a keris hilt properly, would make such a bizarre hilt assemblage is anyone’s guess. The same question can be asked about the ultra deep wranka on the sheath.
Sincerely,
RobT
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