Minangkabau Sumatran Keris Kris

Kris with Walrus Ivory & Silver Mounts

This particularly elegant kris is from the matrilineal Minangkabau people of West Sumatra. It comprises a straight blade, silver-encased scabbard, silver-gilt hilt ring or mendak, and walrus ivory hilt, handguard (wranka) and chape.

The scabbard has a short

jawi (localised Arabic) inscription which probably gives the name of the owner. It is chased on one side with a central panel of scrolling foliage incorporating a stylised clove motif within petal-like borders; and on the other with a criss-cross trellis pattern.

The mendak is of gilded silver and decorated with applied filigree.

The ‘cubist’ style ivory handle depicts a stylised, squatting human figure known as Cipaduik with one arm folded across the chest, diamond-shaped eyes and a jutting nose that dominates the mouthless face. Cipaduik features in many Minangkabau stories as a man who likes to play tricks on people.

The

wranka is of ‘boat’ form and the chape is flared and decorated with some carved detail.

Like many Sumatra kris blades, the blade with this example is straight and has little discernible damascene pattern.

Such kris daggers or short swords were referred to as a

karih by the Minangkabau. They were worn for ceremonial purposes as a sign of power and prestige and were designed to slip into a man’s waist band.

The kris was acquired from within the UK and probably has been in the UK since colonial times. It probably came to the UK from Malaysia, a former British colony, where there is a large Minangkabau emigre community. Items for this community seemed to have been traded between Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The kris is in very fine condition (there is one very small dent to the silver on the lower part of the scabbard) and it has an excellent patina.

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