Aceh Kris for comment

[Cerjak]

I have this one from long time and had never studied it.I found a kris that seems very similar to mine illustrated in "Tammens' De Kris vol. 1"
I would like to know what other menbers think of this and have some advice on how to clean the blade if necessary.
Best
Cerjak

[Cerjak]

"Tammens' De Kris vol. 1".

[Sajen]

I doubt that your keris is an Aceh keris! The scabbard is very different from the shown example by Tammens.
I would place your example to the coastal area from Sumatra.

Regards,
Detlef

[kai]

Hello Cerjak,

I have this one from long time and had never studied it. I found a kris that seems very similar to mine illustrated in "Tammens' De Kris vol. 1"

Tammens based his attribution on the scabbard; whatever one thinks of this notion, your scabbard is of a different type. Thus, let's focus on your piece:

The blade is imported from Java; it may exhibit contrasting pamor and respond well to traditional warangan "washing"/treatment. OTOH, most Bugis-influenced communities nowadays prefer to keep their blades only gently cleaned without staining though. Also the blade lost quite a lot of substance and might have lost most of its original pamor.

The hilt is a very nicely carved example. Close-ups from all sides may help to place it more reliably. Still, these traveled or were traded widely.

The selut is a bit unusual and not the best fit for this hilt; these often got swapped and recycled though.

IMHO, the scabbard does not point towards Sumatra. I'd be inclined to place it within Sulawesi or Sumbawa (however, fittings also traveled - possibly with their seafaring owners). The two copper(?) bands suggest repair attempts. Close-ups of the wood might help, too.

To sum things up, you certainly have a keris worn in a culture influenced by Gowa or Bone/Bugis culture (expat communities as well as many Malay and other communities receiving quite substantial influx/influence).

Regards,
Kai

[Sajen]

Crossed post with Kai!
Like Kai said, your keris is clearly Bugis influenced, Sulawesi or Sumbawa could be possible as well.

[Cerjak]

Hello Detlef and Kai
many thanks for your comments ,here some extra pictures, unfortunately of poor quality ,of course the copper bands are crude repair.
What could be the age of this kris ?
Best
Cerjak

[kai]

Hello Cerjak,

What could be the age of this kris ?

The hilt and scabbard are most likely 19th century IMHO.

For the probably even older blade, we'd need input from Alan, I guess.

You need to post a hi-res pic of the full blade with the tip pointing up and the tapering end of the base pointing towards the right side (also try to have the separating line between the blade and the end piece exactly horizontal - the wave doesn't make this any easier). Also a close-up of the base of the blade (include all features) will be important. For both pics, make sure that you take pics from exactly vertical to the plane of the blade (it helps to remove the hilt - avoid any distortions and angled shots!)

Regards,
Kai

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by Cerjak

........... and have some advice on how to clean the blade if necessary.

Hello Cerjak,

I can't say something regarding the blade, I need to see better pictures. But with your new pictures from the scabbard and the hilt I see a lot of dirt which I would carefully remove, the scabbard I would clean with 000 steel wool and give it some oil (I personally use linseed oil).
The hilt shows as well a lot of dirt in the cavities, I would give it a bath in oil to soften the dirt and after this brush it with a hard toothbrush, repeat it until all dirt is gone. Both, scabbard and hilt can get polished after this with a soft cloth.
And I would look for a better fitting pendokok.
Regards,
Detlef

[Cerjak]

blade pictures

[Cerjak]

Hello Kai and Sajen
I hope these pictures can help identify the blade.
I will also clean the handle and scabbard according to your advice.
Best
CERJAK

[Jean]

The blade looks old (19th century or earlier), it is very worn out at the wadidang (lower back) side, the pamor is sanak (indistinct), and the blade does not match well with the Bugis style scabbard but it could be an old combination
(check for recent carving inside the scabbard slot). The carved hilt seems in rekko style from South Sulawesi.

[Gustav]

The blade with some certainty is older then 19th cent., it originally comes from different Keris culture, as the other forumites observed, but the sheath was obviously made for this blade and have been together for a quite long time (the same perhaps could be true for the ferrule).

I would be cautios to overclean the sheath (and to some extent the hilt), as you will end with a completely different appearance and much bigger contrast of wood and metal parts. I sometimes would let a piece almost as it is, and for me this would be such a piece.