Earlier mentioned a world renowned authority on Javanese art and the keris who made mistakes.
In the past this gentleman was regarded by some people in the Javanese keris trade as something like a bank account that could be drawn on at will. They would produce, one way or another, something unique that had not been see before, take it along to this gentleman with a wonderful story and a sufficiently high price, and it was almost certain that he would buy.
Now, he could, and can, afford to take risks, and sometimes his gambles paid off, but for those of us who have limited funds it is perhaps best to play the game more safely.
I have bought one keris off ebay. Only one. I bought that because I had sold it six months previously and I was able to buy it back for a fraction of what it would cost in Jawa.I do not buy off ebay because for the most part I cannot see sufficient to give me confidence to buy. If I wanted to gamble, and have fun, I would buy from ebay. But I don't want to do this with keris. I do buy from ebay, and I do have fun, but I do not buy keris or weaponry, I buy things like English silver and photographic equipment and canoes.
Research is an integral part of the experience equation, but it is very difficult to apply any experience in some situations.
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