Thursday, July 17, 2008
UNESCO Names Indonesia’s "Kris" World Heritage
Source: Antara News

Denpasar - UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has named Indonesia's "kris", a wavy-bladed ceremonial dagger, as a world heritage, Neka Ubud Museum director Pande Wayan Suteja Neka said here on Thursday.

"The world has acknowledged the existence of Indonesia's kris since November 25, 2005," Suteja Neka said, adding that similar daggers from countries such as Singapore, Brunei Darussalam and the Philippines were not as well-known world-wide.

He said daggers from Indonesia, especially from Bali, had been recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage and therefore they would be added the collection of the museum he had established 26 years ago.

"I have been collecting such daggers and some 413 paintings and statues since 1970," Suteja Neka said. He added that so far he had collected 218 daggers which were tightly selected by kris experts Haryono Haryoguritno and Sukoyo Hadi Nagoro.

According to Neka, the daggers had been used as traditional weapons of Indonesian people, especially the Hindu community in Bali, from generation to generation.

"I have collected hundreds of krises in the museum because of their beauty and artistic design, and not because of their alleged magic powers," Suteja Neka said.