Moro Keris...& Keris......knives of Philipines & Indonesia..

I know what they are but any further information would be gladly received ...

Keris / Kris.....wood handle, damascus blade ... 17 1/4 inches. ( ni, sheath)

Moro.....silver handle , wavy blade................20 inches.. ( " )

 

Would there have been some kind of jewel inside the bezel on the silver handle?

 

u mean the gold part.....I think not....it seems pretty flush.....

 

Gorgeous Moro keris. Philipino keris are not my forte, but I can see this is a very nice one.

The Indonesian keris is East Java or Madura, two culturally related area's, with many Madurese living in neighbouring East Java.
Nice sturdy Jalak blade. Jalak is when the blade flares out gently above the 'waist' and then becomes narrow again towards the tip. It is a very old shape, and one of my favourites.
The pamor or damascene pattern is called Tumpal Keli. It is a rare pamor which is believed to promote good relations with other people and is beneficial for ones career.
Nicely detailed hilt of the Nunggak Semi type, with two little masks. Nunggak Semi means sprouting tree trunk. It is a pretty general type in Java and Madura, based on a stylised ancestor figure.
The sprouting bit of the hilt, the second mask, has to do with the complicated matter of which royal family was the actual heir to the throne of the ancient Majapahit empire. The kingdoms of Demak and Madura were the only real heirs, but a new kingdom in Central Java claimed the old title. This hilt originated in Demak, on the north coast of Java, as a symbolic protest against the new rulers of Central Java who usurped most of Java and Madura, greatly helped by the Dutch East India Company. We are talking 17th century. For the succession problem, not your keris.
By the way, the hilt should be facing the other way.

The hilt ring is probably copper. The model is called parijoto, which means swollen rice. This refers to abundance.

The sarong or sheath is ladrang style, for formal occasions. Do you have a picture of the other side of the sheath?

 

I meant here

 

Bev, I think it is just a comb-shaped decoration, very likely to be a stylised rooster head. They love their chickens in southeast Asia.
If Moro tradition is anything like in Indonesia, the holes could also serve to attach strings of flowers if the keris was worn by a groom at his wedding.

 

Aha. That makes sense. Meanwhile, I learned how to draw on a photo so I'm very proud of myself!!

 

I used to collect those but not very seriously. It looks like someone has used steel wool on the Moro Kris and maybe the other one too, which may not hurt them terribly in trying to sell them because neither are particularly rare collector's items, they are among the more common forms of Ethnographic weapons. If you want the nth degree of info you might post on the ethno weapons pages of the Vikingsword site. Cleaning the metal of old weapons generally isn't a good idea, many collectors prefer the "attic-found" look and get an immediate turnoff from any cleaning.

 

Bev, so you should be! It is a skill I have yet to learn.

Here is a picture of a Javanese wedding keris, no holes, but a gorgeous flower decoration:

 

Moro keris are always polished, they don't have pamor. The Moro looks exactly as it should.
The Indonesian keris hasn't had a steel wool job. The pamor has faded a little and it hasn't been ritually washed for a while. Ritual washing (arsenic, etc) brings out the contrast, but also eats away at the blade, which is why I am an advocate of leaving the blade as it is as long as the pamor isn't too faded.

By the way, I am a member of Vikingsword.

 

"Moro keris are always polished, they don't have pamor. The Moro looks exactly as it should."

I've never seen one with the deep grooves near the hilt, not even "0" steel wool would do that; more like coarse sandpaper. If u didn't see that, look again.

 

It's open in the back like this model, & the Mendak has come loose ..& yes the handle too , so it swung around...

 

Since you didn't specify an area, I assumed you meant the entire blade.
Why do you think part of the base was damaged with steel wool? I think it has just lost its little decoration, like the one on the base of this Moro keris:
http://goedangdjadoel.com/kerismoroluk15/

 

That is the front. In this case the oversheath is called a pendok blewah. It is openfronted, either to show a good quality wood, the possible fact that the sheath was carved out of a single piece of wood (more valuable), or to show an inlay.
Here are some examples from north Java and Madura:

 

You can secure the mendak and hilt by adding some more textile wrapping around the peksi, or thorn of the blade. I took the hilt off the north Java keris so you can
see what it looks like.
Take care that the crack on your hilt doesn't get worse.

 

Well, it looks like one piece of wood , as the grain is consistent throughout.
& the handle is rock solid.....that line is just a hot light on the edge of the warm patina.
Again....thank you so much for the education.

As for the Moro , while I don't think it's a tourist piece, it's not an older one either and I do see those extra fine lines on the blade , but they are so consistent I doubt they were made by hand with steel wool.

 

If it is one piece of wood, it is more valuable. It is called 'gandar iras'.
A rare pamor deserves a gandar iras. And I am glad the hilt is OK.

As I said, Moro keris are not my forte. But I have never seen a pistol hilt on a Moro. Your pistol hilt is not an Indonesian one, so it could be unusual. It is certainly very beautiful.

 

Show it to your pals on Vikingsword....I too think the hilt is strange , & off center.
I was looking for a nice representation....& while the guard and stirrup are modest at best....the hilt was just too nice to pass up.

 

& of course now...all my pics are already on google.......even my new avatar...
damn Bots !

 

The troops are on it. I asked a keris friend who knows her Indonesian pistol hilts. Seemed like a good idea. She had never seen this style of Moro hilt before, but said the bottom part of the hilt looked like a Moro gunong hilt ring, which is bulbous. Here is a Vikingsword page on gunongs, with pics:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15940
A bit down the page it says that after WWII the gunong hilt changed to a pistol grip.
My friend suggested that your keris-hilt might be a marriage, which it could very well be. She has e-mailed a Moro expert, so we'll have to wait and see.