Minister Of Culture Fadli Zon Opens Pusaka Bare Exhibition In Maros, Emphasizes The Importance Of Caring For Keris Culture

The Indonesian Minister of Culture, Fadli Zon, opened the Pusaka Barah Exhibition in the framework of the Gau Maraja Leang-Leang Festival at the Baruga Building, Maros Regent's Office, South Sulawesi, Thursday, July 3. This event coincided with the commemoration of the 66th Maros Regency Anniversary and became an important momentum to strengthen collective awareness of the preservation of the Keris culture.

Fadli Zon expressed his high appreciation for holding an exhibition that was considered strategic in caring for cultural heritage. "I appreciate this heirloom blades exhibition. Heritage objects such as keris and badik are a very valuable intangible cultural heritage," he said.

He stressed that keris has been recognized by the world as an unobtent cultural heritage since UNESCO recorded in 2005. In South Sulawesi, keris culture has a long history. The manuscripts I La Galigo and Pau-Paunna Indale Patara have alluded to the existence of keris since centuries ago," he explained.

Fadli explained that the Keris culture in South Sulawesi has developed rapidly since the end of the Majapahit era. There are two main keris styles, namely the Bugis Keris and the Makassar Keris. Keris Bugis influenced the Keris culture in Sumatra and Kalimantan, while the Makassar keris spread to Lombok, East Nusa Tenggara, Bima, and Maluku," he said.

He also highlighted Sulawesi's Keris and badik which are known to have quality prestige, cooked iron, and superior tempa techniques. "Besi Sulawesi has even been traded to Europe during the Banten Sultanate," said Fadli.

In addition to the blades, he explained the value of keris aesthetics reinforced by warangka materials and upstream from selected wood such as kemuning, sandalwood, santigi, to kodusu. All of this brings symbolic, spiritual, and high artistic forces inherited across generations.

Fadli Zon also emphasized the importance of introducing Keris culture to the younger generation. He assessed that Gen Z needs adequate access to education in order to be able to appreciate ancestral heritage. One of the most effective ways of education is through exhibitions like this. The younger generation must know that keris is not only weapons, but the identity of the nation," he said.

This Pusaka Bare exhibition is part of the commitment of local and central governments to maintain the continuity of tradition. The Gau Maraja Leang-Leang Festival is also designed as a meeting space for empus, craftsmen, collectors, and the wider community, so that the Keris culture remains alive and relevant today.