The Keris Makers of Sumenep
Sumenep in Madura is known as the center of keris-making in Indonesia. Its products were exported to Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and as far away as America before the 1998 crisis.
November 1, 2005
THE workshop built of coconut wood is in a mess. Pliers, pincers, hammers of all kinds, sickles, iron bars, and blades lie everywhere amid ashes from the furnace. Five sacks of charcoal lean on the plaited bamboo walls, next to them are iron sheets, rusty knives and keris. A 20-centimeter pipe connects to the furnace. The 6x3-meter workshop is where Haji Abdul Ropi is making keris in Desa Lenteng Barat, Sumenep, on the Island of Madura.
With two a
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