“THAT’S a knife”.*
Yes, I finally went back to the Malay Art Gallery, and bought the keris I reserved back in June. I had an interesting discussion with Syed about the history and culture of the kris, and why only one small island in the whole Malay peninsula traditionally adorns the scabbards of their kerises with images of horses. My just-invented theory is that some lost expedition of Mongols got wrecked there. Hey, we know that they got as far as Myanmar and Thailand!
While we spoke, Syed oiled the blade. The oil they use is based on sandalwood oil – but that, on its own, is too thick and sticky, so they blend it with thinner oils infused with floral essences. The problem with this is that the scent pervades my room, and is making my flatmate cast some very strange looks my way… I hope the smell fades soon!
* Am I showing my age by assuming that a quote from Crocodile Dundee will automatically be recognised? Oh no! I’m getting old!
Dude, post a pic!
In fact, post a few!
The picture I link to in the article is actually the keris I bought: a Moro Keris Sundang, with a few nicks in the blade that show it’s had some use in anger… According to Syed, it dates from the end of the 19th century/early 20th century, ie around the time that the USA was occupying the Philippines. I wonder sometimes if it was used against the Marines! (Did you know that the Colt .45 was developed specifically to fight against the Filipinos in that war? The smaller-calibre weapons that the Marines used then weren’t sufficient to take them down…)