new keris magazine

A. G. Maisey · 8th April 2007, 04:38 AM

A further comment on PAMOR.
There are lot of general interest articles, that, as Shahrial has said, could be of value in assisting with an understanding of present day cultural background, for somebody who has not had much contact with Javanese society and culture. From the point of view of a person who is a part of this culture, there would also be a lot of interest in this magazine.However, I feel that the more deeply any person was immersed in the specific culture of the keris, the less such a person might find to be of interest in PAMOR.

In any case, its a nicely produced magazine.

My comments reflect my personal opinion only, and since my particular field of interest in the keris is fairly tightly focussed, it is only to be expected that a magazine produced for a general readership will not have much in it to interest me.

I haven't heard anything about an English edition of The Big Keris Book, but I suppose it could happen I think the sponsor of the book is Bank Central Asia, so, I guess it will probably come down to whether they can see a commercial advantage in sponsoring an English language edition.

David, you comment that you do not want to buy this book twice. A number of my friends have had difficulty in even buying it once. They have repeatedly sent emails to the nominated sellers of the book, but it seems that none of these nominated sellers wish to engage in dealings with anybody outside Indonesia. The only reason I have a copy is because a friend gave me a copy. Even in Solo its not the easiest thing in the world to get a copy. You can't walk into a bookshop and buy one. You need to contact the local distributor, who seems to be pretty much unapproachable, and who needs to approached by way of a network of friendships.
I am coming to the opinion that this book was really only produced for consumption within Indonesia. I do not think that the people involved in its production really want to see it on the world stage. Which is a pity, because it really is a wonderful production. This is not to say it is without fault, and it has already been subjected to some criticism in Indonesia, but I myself would hesitate to criticise it simply because its magnificence far outweighs any carping criticism that might be able to be levelled at it.

Alam Shah · 30th April 2007, 12:37 AM

The April edition (No.2) of the KERIS magazine is out. In it, there are some Yogyakarta's Kraton (palace) pieces, with some commentary of the pieces.

The featured keris, Keris Tamansari is another one to behold and would make a nice discussion piece in the Golden Keris.

Other notes-worthy articles includes, a nice but short article about pamor beras wutah. The coverage of the burning-down of the Istana Pagaruyung (Minangkabau Palace), by a lightning strike on 27 Feb 2007, a lot of pusakas were lost that day,

and quite a number of other short articles.

Marco, I see that you've got your copy.

A. G. Maisey · 30th April 2007, 09:11 AM

I read the new edition of "KERIS", I think, two weeks ago.

My opinion remains unaltered.

Regarding the possibility of an English edition of The Big Keris Book.

Nobody I have spoken with in Solo has heard of this possibility, and one person amongst these people is in a position where he should have known if an English edition was on the program.

What I did hear was that there is a desire to publish similar books to "Keris Jawa" that would deal with Balinese, Bugis, Sumatran, and other keris. The problem seems to be that the collectors who own the necessary top drawer examples of these other keris have been less than cooperative in promises to make pieces from their collections available for photographs.

One very high level collector was mentioned as being quite willing to allow his collection pieces to be photographed, provided he recieved an (apparently) extortionate level of royalties.

I feel that bearing in mind all factors, the Indonesian language edition of "Keris Jawa" may be all we will ever see. I hope I'm wrong, but that's the way I read it.

Alam Shah · 30th April 2007, 01:16 PM

Alan, I believe it may not be suitable for you, but it is suitable for one whom have very little knowledge and exposure, like myself.

I tend to agree that these magazine are meant for local distribution.
As for the Big Keris Book, it doesn't look good for the English version...hmmm.

David, in this case, you should go ahead with the Indonesian version. Coupled with a good Javanese-English dictionary, it should be readable. I'm sure Alan can recommend a good dictionary.

Boedhi Adhitya · 30th April 2007, 04:15 PM

Regarding the English version of Keris Jawa: antara Mistik dan Nalar, I've asked the Secretary General of SNKI Mr. Wiwoho Basuki personally on 22 April, and he said the translation is 'in progress'. The chairman of PT Indonesia Kebangganku, Mr. Rudy Pesik, as the publisher, also said so, last year. Sooner or later, I believe, the English Version would be published, as one of the aims of PT Indonesia Kebangganku (as it's name implies) is to introduce Indonesian artwork internationally. But everything goes very slow down here, so for those who reallty wish to have the English Version, please be patient, a lot...

The Keris and Pamor magazines, while it discuss the same subject (that is, keris or wesi aji), have a very different approach. The Keris Magazine's discussion tends toward the cultural aspect or stories of keris and any other news about traditional culture. Most of Keris reporters are not knowledgeable in tosan aji world, and many of the editor came from former Tempo News Magazine. Thus, Keris' content would be more general and more 'entertaining'.

Pamor, on the other hand, published by Panji Nusantara, a Jakarta-based keris collector organization which is trying to open branch nationwide. Most of Pamor editor are keris 'professional', that is, those who make living from keris/tosan aji. The editor put heavy emphasize on technical or historical aspect of keris. Ones may learn something, but use it with (a lot of) precautions.

Alam Shah, the pictures of Kraton Yogyakarta's pieces were taken from Kraton Jogja, History and Cultural Heritage, the official book regarding Kraton Yogyakarta. The pictures, which were inverted in the book, had already corrected in Keris Magazine, but the caption remains false. The pictures of K.K Purbaniyat should be K.K. Toyatinaban, and vice versa.

Alam Shah · 30th April 2007, 04:49 PM

Hi Boedhi, thank you for the timely update.

In that case, David... hold your horses... bear with it a little longer.

Thanks again. I will correct the labels in the magazine.

A. G. Maisey · 30th April 2007, 11:51 PM

Well, Pak Boedhi, I certainly hope you are right.

I got back home from Solo on Saturday. While I was in Solo I spoke with a number of people in the keris trade, and with well connected collectors. I did not speak with Bp. Rudy Pesik, I do not personally know him, and from all accounts he is just a little difficult to gain personal access to.However. one of the people I did speak with counts himself as a close friend of Pak Rudy, and in turn, he is a close, long time friend of mine. My friend's comment was something along the lines of :- "Yes, well, there are always many plans. If an English edition ever does come out, I do not think I will see it." My friend is 64, and in good health.

I hope my friend is wrong, and that you are right.

In respect of the magazines, not one of my friends in Solo has purchased a copy of either magazine after the first of each, and some did not purchase even the first.Their opinions are about the same as mine, but several people were very much more scathing in their criticism, than I would care to be.

30th April 2007, 12:37 AM	#2
Alam Shah Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,248	April Edition (No.2), KERIS magazine The April edition (No.2) of the KERIS magazine is out. In it, there are some Yogyakarta's Kraton (palace) pieces, with some commentary of the pieces. The featured keris, Keris Tamansari is another one to behold and would make a nice discussion piece in the Golden Keris. Other notes-worthy articles includes, a nice but short article about pamor beras wutah. The coverage of the burning-down of the Istana Pagaruyung (Minangkabau Palace), by a lightning strike on 27 Feb 2007, a lot of pusakas were lost that day, and quite a number of other short articles. Marco, I see that you've got your copy. Last edited by Alam Shah; 30th April 2007 at 01:06 PM. Reason: spelling

8th April 2007, 04:38 AM	#1
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,048	A further comment on PAMOR. There are lot of general interest articles, that, as Shahrial has said, could be of value in assisting with an understanding of present day cultural background, for somebody who has not had much contact with Javanese society and culture. From the point of view of a person who is a part of this culture, there would also be a lot of interest in this magazine.However, I feel that the more deeply any person was immersed in the specific culture of the keris, the less such a person might find to be of interest in PAMOR. In any case, its a nicely produced magazine. My comments reflect my personal opinion only, and since my particular field of interest in the keris is fairly tightly focussed, it is only to be expected that a magazine produced for a general readership will not have much in it to interest me. I haven't heard anything about an English edition of The Big Keris Book, but I suppose it could happen I think the sponsor of the book is Bank Central Asia, so, I guess it will probably come down to whether they can see a commercial advantage in sponsoring an English language edition. David, you comment that you do not want to buy this book twice. A number of my friends have had difficulty in even buying it once. They have repeatedly sent emails to the nominated sellers of the book, but it seems that none of these nominated sellers wish to engage in dealings with anybody outside Indonesia. The only reason I have a copy is because a friend gave me a copy. Even in Solo its not the easiest thing in the world to get a copy. You can't walk into a bookshop and buy one. You need to contact the local distributor, who seems to be pretty much unapproachable, and who needs to approached by way of a network of friendships. I am coming to the opinion that this book was really only produced for consumption within Indonesia. I do not think that the people involved in its production really want to see it on the world stage. Which is a pity, because it really is a wonderful production. This is not to say it is without fault, and it has already been subjected to some criticism in Indonesia, but I myself would hesitate to criticise it simply because its magnificence far outweighs any carping criticism that might be able to be levelled at it.

30th April 2007, 09:11 AM	#3
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,048	I read the new edition of "KERIS", I think, two weeks ago. My opinion remains unaltered. Regarding the possibility of an English edition of The Big Keris Book. Nobody I have spoken with in Solo has heard of this possibility, and one person amongst these people is in a position where he should have known if an English edition was on the program. What I did hear was that there is a desire to publish similar books to "Keris Jawa" that would deal with Balinese, Bugis, Sumatran, and other keris. The problem seems to be that the collectors who own the necessary top drawer examples of these other keris have been less than cooperative in promises to make pieces from their collections available for photographs. One very high level collector was mentioned as being quite willing to allow his collection pieces to be photographed, provided he recieved an (apparently) extortionate level of royalties. I feel that bearing in mind all factors, the Indonesian language edition of "Keris Jawa" may be all we will ever see. I hope I'm wrong, but that's the way I read it.

30th April 2007, 01:16 PM	#4
Alam Shah Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,248	Alan, I believe it may not be suitable for you, but it is suitable for one whom have very little knowledge and exposure, like myself. I tend to agree that these magazine are meant for local distribution. As for the Big Keris Book, it doesn't look good for the English version...hmmm. David, in this case, you should go ahead with the Indonesian version. Coupled with a good Javanese-English dictionary, it should be readable. I'm sure Alan can recommend a good dictionary.

30th April 2007, 04:15 PM	#5
Boedhi Adhitya Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 103	Regarding the English version of Keris Jawa: antara Mistik dan Nalar, I've asked the Secretary General of SNKI Mr. Wiwoho Basuki personally on 22 April, and he said the translation is 'in progress'. The chairman of PT Indonesia Kebangganku, Mr. Rudy Pesik, as the publisher, also said so, last year. Sooner or later, I believe, the English Version would be published, as one of the aims of PT Indonesia Kebangganku (as it's name implies) is to introduce Indonesian artwork internationally. But everything goes very slow down here, so for those who reallty wish to have the English Version, please be patient, a lot... The Keris and Pamor magazines, while it discuss the same subject (that is, keris or wesi aji), have a very different approach. The Keris Magazine's discussion tends toward the cultural aspect or stories of keris and any other news about traditional culture. Most of Keris reporters are not knowledgeable in tosan aji world, and many of the editor came from former Tempo News Magazine. Thus, Keris' content would be more general and more 'entertaining'. Pamor, on the other hand, published by Panji Nusantara, a Jakarta-based keris collector organization which is trying to open branch nationwide. Most of Pamor editor are keris 'professional', that is, those who make living from keris/tosan aji. The editor put heavy emphasize on technical or historical aspect of keris. Ones may learn something, but use it with (a lot of) precautions. Alam Shah, the pictures of Kraton Yogyakarta's pieces were taken from Kraton Jogja, History and Cultural Heritage, the official book regarding Kraton Yogyakarta. The pictures, which were inverted in the book, had already corrected in Keris Magazine, but the caption remains false. The pictures of K.K Purbaniyat should be K.K. Toyatinaban, and vice versa.

30th April 2007, 04:49 PM	#6
Alam Shah Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,248	Hi Boedhi, thank you for the timely update. In that case, David... hold your horses... bear with it a little longer. Thanks again. I will correct the labels in the magazine.

30th April 2007, 11:51 PM	#7
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,048	Well, Pak Boedhi, I certainly hope you are right. I got back home from Solo on Saturday. While I was in Solo I spoke with a number of people in the keris trade, and with well connected collectors. I did not speak with Bp. Rudy Pesik, I do not personally know him, and from all accounts he is just a little difficult to gain personal access to.However. one of the people I did speak with counts himself as a close friend of Pak Rudy, and in turn, he is a close, long time friend of mine. My friend's comment was something along the lines of :- "Yes, well, there are always many plans. If an English edition ever does come out, I do not think I will see it." My friend is 64, and in good health. I hope my friend is wrong, and that you are right. In respect of the magazines, not one of my friends in Solo has purchased a copy of either magazine after the first of each, and some did not purchase even the first.Their opinions are about the same as mine, but several people were very much more scathing in their criticism, than I would care to be.