Banyu Sumurup survives as kris village

Banyu Sumurup survives as kris village

Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post/Bantul, Yogyakarta

If you are a true believer in the supernatural or just a
collector, you will find Banyu Sumurup, a village in Imogiri
subdistrict, Bantul regency, some 20 kilometers southeast of
Yogyakarta, an interesting place for kris shopping.

Located some 500 meters from a renowned royal cemetery from
the Mataram Kingdom, the village is home to skilled craftsmen
producing the traditional double-bladed daggers.

Although there are fewer craftsmen than in the 1990s, the
village still produce hundreds of kris per month, mostly as
souvenirs for tourists.

"We used to have some 200 kris craftsmen in the 1990s, now we
only have about half that number," Darmaji, 40, a kris craftsman,
told The Jakarta Post recently.

Craftsmen in Banyu Sumurup are differentiated according to
their areas of expertise. There are, for example, craftsmen
specialized in making the body of the kris, the warongko (the
casing) and the pendok (ornaments installed on the bottom of the
casing).

"Everything is then collected by the pengepul, or collectors,
and assembled into a kris for distribution across the country,"
Darmaji said.

Hartinah, a craftswoman specializing in making warongko, said
she could produce about 20 pieces a day.

It is said that the village began crafting kris in the 1200s,
when a kris maker, or empu, fled here to escape a war in the
Majapahit Kingdom following a rebellion led by Soreng Lono.

Empu Supomo, as the kris maker was known, settled in the
village and continued making kris. His expertise was passed down
through the generations and the village became renowned as a kris
village.

Empu Djiwo Diharjo, 70, who is said to be related to Empu
Supomo, began the production of kris as souvenirs in 1972. He
says making a kris as a souvenir is quite different from crafting
a sacred kris.

To make a sacred kris, he says, one is required to perform a
series of special laku, or rituals, which is why only an empu can
produce a sacred kris.

"The requirements include fasting prior to the manufacturing
process and not speaking while working on the kris. Otherwise the
kris will lose its supernatural power," said Djiwo, the only
sacred kris maker in the village.

Before starting work on a sacred kris, the empu must know the
birthday of the person who will own the dagger. This information
is needed so the empu can decide when the best time is to begin
work on the kris.

Djiwo said the sacred kris he makes can cost between Rp 2.5
million and tens of millions of rupiah. All of the sacred kris
are made by special order only and are customized according to
the requests of customers. A buyer, for example, may require a
kris coated with gold, with a handle made of either wood or
ivory.

The level of sacredness, too, influences the price. The more
powerful a kris, the more expensive it is because the more
difficult it is to make.

"Sometimes, a sacred kris takes years to finish," said Djiwo,
adding that he sold a sacred kris for Rp 65 million in 1972.

Djiwo says that he was moved in 1972 to begin producing kris
as souvenirs because at more and more tourists wanted to purchase
kris.

He took 15 young people in Banyu Sumurup and trained them to
produce kris as souvenirs. They were divided into three different
groups, each trained either to make the kris, the warongko or to
do the carving. He did it this way to prevent unhealthy
competition in the future, as each person had their own area of
expertise.

Later, as more people joined the business, Djiwo established a
cooperative to collect the different parts of the kris, assemble
them and get the finished products to the market. By 1975, some
200 villagers were already working in the business.

The regency government of Bantul in 1978 gave Djiwo the
opportunity to hold a solo exhibition in Jakarta to show his
kris. He held similar exhibitions that same year in several other
cities, including Semarang (Central Java), Denpasar and Bandung
(West Java).

In 1985 he began exhibiting his works abroad. He started in
the Netherlands before going to Australia in 1989, the Middle
East in 1992 and Brunei in 2002.

Sales counters were also opened around the country, including
in Jakarta, Bali, Semarang and Bandung. Orders from foreign
countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Japan also
poured in.

"Until 1990, all kris were made in Banyu Sumurup. The
trademarks could be different, but they were all made here,"
Djiwo added.

Djiwo was recognized for his work in developing the business
in 1986 with three awards from three different ministers:
minister of manpower Sudomo, minister of cooperatives Bustanil
Arifin and minister of industry Hartarto.

In 1992, Djiwo withdrew from the business and focused on
crafting sacred kris. He says he makes between six and 10 sacred
kris a year, but with revenue of tens of millions of rupiah.

Apart from making sacred kris, Djiwo also washes sacred kris,
a ritual known as jamasan. He holds between 10 and 15 jamasan
rituals a month, and counts government officials among his
regular clients.