coments on this...a help

A. G. Maisey · 16th January 2008, 09:41 PM

Henk, I can see the discolouration on the back of wrongko too, but in my experience, this is not consistent with the previous fitting of a pendok. When a pendok is fitted the gandar is left as raw timber, and very often finished to a very crude standard; it is advantageous for a gandar fitted with a pendok to be a bit rough, because it helps to retain the pendok; additionally the tip of the gandar is often left square, or open, it is rarely finished to a smooth curve; often the transition from gandar to atasan is less than neat. This keris has a fully finished, and perfectly shaped gandar, which bears a finish showing about the same degree of patina as the atasan, the transition from gandar to atasan would have been neat when this wrongko was made. In brief, the gandar simply has not been made in the way that a gandar to be fitted with a pendok is made. Yes, at some time somebody might have thought that it would look better with a pendok, but it is never possible just to pick up a pendok and push it onto the gandar, it needs to be fitted, and that fitting removes wood.

There are several possibilities for the discolouration:- the gandar has been reglued and the discolouration was caused by the cleanup; the keris has been suspended by a cloth loop or similar for a lengthy period; at some point in its life the wrongko joint was covered with a cloth or a metal band.

Regarding false pelet. I do not know what is used to create the stain, however it was very widely used in both Jawa and Bali, and sometimes it is so good that it is almost impossible to detect.

16th January 2008, 09:41 PM	#14
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,085	Henk, I can see the discolouration on the back of wrongko too, but in my experience, this is not consistent with the previous fitting of a pendok. When a pendok is fitted the gandar is left as raw timber, and very often finished to a very crude standard; it is advantageous for a gandar fitted with a pendok to be a bit rough, because it helps to retain the pendok; additionally the tip of the gandar is often left square, or open, it is rarely finished to a smooth curve; often the transition from gandar to atasan is less than neat. This keris has a fully finished, and perfectly shaped gandar, which bears a finish showing about the same degree of patina as the atasan, the transition from gandar to atasan would have been neat when this wrongko was made. In brief, the gandar simply has not been made in the way that a gandar to be fitted with a pendok is made. Yes, at some time somebody might have thought that it would look better with a pendok, but it is never possible just to pick up a pendok and push it onto the gandar, it needs to be fitted, and that fitting removes wood. There are several possibilities for the discolouration:- the gandar has been reglued and the discolouration was caused by the cleanup; the keris has been suspended by a cloth loop or similar for a lengthy period; at some point in its life the wrongko joint was covered with a cloth or a metal band. Regarding false pelet. I do not know what is used to create the stain, however it was very widely used in both Jawa and Bali, and sometimes it is so good that it is almost impossible to detect.