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Malay kris dagger

Type Object Region Southeast Asia Time 1500–1600

The Malay kris (keris) was a wavy-bladed short weapon and ceremonial object widely circulated in sixteenth-century Southeast Asia, famed for forging …

Timeline

  1. 1500–1550Java · JavaJavanese and Malay Peninsula smiths formed the distinctive wavy pattern (pamor) through multi-layer forging and acid etching, making the kris a technical-artistic object capable of identifying its owner and its maker's school.
  2. c. 1570–1590Former territory of the Malacca Sultanate · MalaccaMalay courts distinguished rank by hilt and scabbard material, pattern and manner of wearing; the kris became a material symbol of political legitimacy in investitures, oath-taking and diplomatic gifts.
  3. 1590–1600Sulu Sea and the north coast of Borneo · Sulu SeaIn the 1590s, competition along the spice routes intensified; Sulu and Borneo warriors and Malay sea merchants commonly wore the kris, and the object spread through war booty and trade to a wider archipelagic network.

Sources