Garuda Kris

[kai]

I recently acquired a third Garuda Kris from England. It was collected by a British Naval officer in the 1920’s while aboard a Royal Navy Hydrographical Survey Ship in the British North Borneo region.

Wow, you have been busy - congrats on acquiring these neat pieces, especially the 2 old ones!

Dimensions and a close-up of the sosoran area (base of the blade) taken from exactly above would be great though!

I might stipulate that the link to Garuda is far from established! It seems likely that this type of pommels originates from successively abstracted figural keris hilts (Java, Sumatra, Malay Peninsula, brought to bangksa Moro possibly via coastal Malay communities from Borneo); their exact symbolism is also not convincingly established yet. An originally protective function as well as a root in ancestor worship can be assumed though.

Regards,
Kai