Latest addition

Pendita65 · 11th December 2025, 12:09 PM

Hi fellow members,

I recently acquired this Keris with silver pendok. I think it's a Keris Gayaman Surakarta, it's missing a mendak and could use some TLC. I would like to know what this type of pendok is called as I could not find much info about it's decoration. The wilah is not that tall and 5 Luk.

So hope to gain some more info about this Keris.

Thnx for now and regards, Martin

Sajen · Today, 01:30 PM

Hi Martin,

Since nobody commented until now I will give it a try. Can't say something about the pendok other that it is the nicest part of the ensemble.
And yes, the sarung looks like you said, Gayaman Surakarta style. The blade is very worn and the poorest part of the ensemble, can't say something about the handle in your pictures but seems of relatively poor quality, sorry.
I guess that the worn blade is the reason that nobody has commented until now.
Alan would be the person who could tell you something about the pendok.

Regards,
Detlef

Pendita65 · Today, 03:56 PM

Hi Detlef,

i thought allready that this keris didn't sparkle to the people on here.

And beside the fact that i know that the blade is worn i didn't regret buying it, as i really like the quality of the pendok, and finding nice qualtiy pendok is also not that easy nowadays.

Regards, Martin

David · Today, 04:40 PM

Hi Martin. It is an interesting pattern on the pendok that i don't believe i have seem before. Are you sure it is silver though. Doesn't really appear so in the photos, but that might just be a bad colour balance.
Sure, the keris itself is nothing to write home about, but that doesn't mean it is not worth collecting as long as the price was right. It's pretty basic village work, but you should not regret buyingit as long as you are happy with it.
I am trying to decide if the gandik is long enough for it, but i think i would call this a dhapur in the Kebo family.
The blade sits weirdly in the hilt. I don't know if this is because the hole is poorly drilled in the hilt or if the pesi is bent. It would be nice to fix that, but if the pesi is bent i would not necessarily try to bent it back. Can we see a photo with the hilt off?
Also, a mendhak would be an easy and relatively inexpensive way to complete this ensemble and make it look a little better, especially if you can refit it all better for a proper condong leleh.

A. G. Maisey · Today, 09:45 PM

Alan is unable to put a name on this pendok motif, overall it looks like a Banyumas pendok, but it is not really out of place matched to this wrongko. It might be silver, might be mamas, no way of knowing short of a test, but it doesn’t really matter, there is no real difference in quality or value between the two materials at this end of the scale, it will be quite light in weight. Light polish with 0000 steel wool, or maybe just a silver cloth.

I think I’d be inclined to strip the wrongko of its finish with medium grade steel wool and methylated spirits, re-polish then give it a few coats of danish oil, take the shine off the final coat with a light once over with 0000 steel wool, it will come up pretty nice.

The hilt pretty pedestrian, but its OK, I would not re-finish this,I think, hand rub with furniture oil and wipe off with a soft cloth will help remove dirt, brush the carved areas with a tooth brush.

As previously commented, the blade is not great, but that is not necessarily a negative. If we study the keris, we need to understand the entire spectrum, not just the high art. It is a keris, it is quite representative of a lower level, it has a couple of unusual elements, one of which is the gandik which is too long for normal proportions, too short for a kebo. It is, I believe, a pretty old blade, perhaps classifiable as Pajajaran, but I’d need it in hand to be a bit more sure of that. Its OK for what it is.

As David remarked, the hilt is not well fitted. Remove it, clean out the hole, there might be some old, loose binding stuck there that prevents the hilt from sitting correctly. If the pesi (tang) is a bit skewed, give it a bit of heat from a torch, just black hot, use something as an anvil, maybe part of a bench vice, & lightly tap back the pesi into a correct alignment. That tang should be quite soft anyway, heat treat never goes anywhere near the tang, & I doubt there is much evidence of heat treat left in this blade anyway. When we quench a blade, that hardness lessens the further it penetrates the blade, and I believe that maintenance over time will have removed much of the hardness from this blade.

When you are confident that you can bring the hilt into alignment with the blade, use knitting wool as your material to bind the hilt, & get hold of a mendak, which should not be difficult. I’d be quite prepared to give you one that would do the job, but the postage would cost vastly more than the mendak would be worth, so that’s not an option, maybe somebody who lives closer to you might be able to assist.

Tidied up a bit, this keris has the possibility to present quite nicely.

11th December 2025, 12:09 PM	#1
Pendita65 Member Join Date: Feb 2023 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 141	Latest addition Hi fellow members, I recently acquired this Keris with silver pendok. I think it's a Keris Gayaman Surakarta, it's missing a mendak and could use some TLC. I would like to know what this type of pendok is called as I could not find much info about it's decoration. The wilah is not that tall and 5 Luk. So hope to gain some more info about this Keris. Thnx for now and regards, Martin Attached Images

Today, 01:30 PM	#2
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,475	Hi Martin, Since nobody commented until now I will give it a try. Can't say something about the pendok other that it is the nicest part of the ensemble. And yes, the sarung looks like you said, Gayaman Surakarta style. The blade is very worn and the poorest part of the ensemble, can't say something about the handle in your pictures but seems of relatively poor quality, sorry. I guess that the worn blade is the reason that nobody has commented until now. Alan would be the person who could tell you something about the pendok. Regards, Detlef

Today, 03:56 PM	#3
Pendita65 Member Join Date: Feb 2023 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 141	Hi Detlef, i thought allready that this keris didn't sparkle to the people on here. And beside the fact that i know that the blade is worn i didn't regret buying it, as i really like the quality of the pendok, and finding nice qualtiy pendok is also not that easy nowadays. Regards, Martin

Today, 04:40 PM	#4
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,261	Hi Martin. It is an interesting pattern on the pendok that i don't believe i have seem before. Are you sure it is silver though. Doesn't really appear so in the photos, but that might just be a bad colour balance. Sure, the keris itself is nothing to write home about, but that doesn't mean it is not worth collecting as long as the price was right. It's pretty basic village work, but you should not regret buyingit as long as you are happy with it. I am trying to decide if the gandik is long enough for it, but i think i would call this a dhapur in the Kebo family. The blade sits weirdly in the hilt. I don't know if this is because the hole is poorly drilled in the hilt or if the pesi is bent. It would be nice to fix that, but if the pesi is bent i would not necessarily try to bent it back. Can we see a photo with the hilt off? Also, a mendhak would be an easy and relatively inexpensive way to complete this ensemble and make it look a little better, especially if you can refit it all better for a proper condong leleh.

Today, 09:45 PM	#5
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,128	Alan is unable to put a name on this pendok motif, overall it looks like a Banyumas pendok, but it is not really out of place matched to this wrongko. It might be silver, might be mamas, no way of knowing short of a test, but it doesn’t really matter, there is no real difference in quality or value between the two materials at this end of the scale, it will be quite light in weight. Light polish with 0000 steel wool, or maybe just a silver cloth. I think I’d be inclined to strip the wrongko of its finish with medium grade steel wool and methylated spirits, re-polish then give it a few coats of danish oil, take the shine off the final coat with a light once over with 0000 steel wool, it will come up pretty nice. The hilt pretty pedestrian, but its OK, I would not re-finish this,I think, hand rub with furniture oil and wipe off with a soft cloth will help remove dirt, brush the carved areas with a tooth brush. As previously commented, the blade is not great, but that is not necessarily a negative. If we study the keris, we need to understand the entire spectrum, not just the high art. It is a keris, it is quite representative of a lower level, it has a couple of unusual elements, one of which is the gandik which is too long for normal proportions, too short for a kebo. It is, I believe, a pretty old blade, perhaps classifiable as Pajajaran, but I’d need it in hand to be a bit more sure of that. Its OK for what it is. As David remarked, the hilt is not well fitted. Remove it, clean out the hole, there might be some old, loose binding stuck there that prevents the hilt from sitting correctly. If the pesi (tang) is a bit skewed, give it a bit of heat from a torch, just black hot, use something as an anvil, maybe part of a bench vice, & lightly tap back the pesi into a correct alignment. That tang should be quite soft anyway, heat treat never goes anywhere near the tang, & I doubt there is much evidence of heat treat left in this blade anyway. When we quench a blade, that hardness lessens the further it penetrates the blade, and I believe that maintenance over time will have removed much of the hardness from this blade. When you are confident that you can bring the hilt into alignment with the blade, use knitting wool as your material to bind the hilt, & get hold of a mendak, which should not be difficult. I’d be quite prepared to give you one that would do the job, but the postage would cost vastly more than the mendak would be worth, so that’s not an option, maybe somebody who lives closer to you might be able to assist. Tidied up a bit, this keris has the possibility to present quite nicely.