Abdul Rifai is already old 61 year. It's not young anymore. But his hobbies and work are collecting and wearing things that are older than his age.
HERBAYU CRIDA, Glagah
Rifai's ancient HOUSE in West Kemiren Hamlet, the traditional area of Kemiren Village is often visited by antique hunters. Various types of antiques ranging from ancient lamps, mobil, cupboard, chair, heirloom, pistol, painting, to matches of the year 1930, is in that house.
The man is a retired civil servant from the Banyuwangi Education Office, I have been fond of collecting antiques since I was in college. Since 1980, while studying, he works as a broker buying and selling antiques. And now, the work became a hobby that he could not leave.
The antiques he got did not come from Blambangan. He only has a few original ancient objects from the Oseng tribe. Some of the collections are ani-ani of the Oseng Tribe, Oseng Tribe's arrow chopsticks, kiling Oseng, and Gaman Oseng.
These objects he got from the legacy of his ancestors. Many antique hunters come to his house to buy some of his collections. Items that are often the target of buyers are old lamps made since the 19th century.
The price offered by Rifai varies, depending on the quality and also the age of the antique. One of the antiques, namely his ancient lamp, was once offered by a buyer of Rp 75 million, but Rifai doesn't want to let go of the ancient lamp because it still has a high historical value.
Not only old lamps, VW sedan car year 1971 which he has now also did not escape the offer of antique hunters. The cream-colored car was once offered at a price of Rp 120 million. But this time, Rifai also could not let go of the car. The frog car still faithfully accompanies him when he walks around town.
“Masih sering saya pakai keliling untuk jalan-jalan. I still can't sell it,” ujar pria kelahiran 20 May 1956 that.
Besides that, there are also many antique objects in his collection. One of them is an ancient gun made in the USA 1870. He got the gun from one of his friends in Surabaya.
The gun weighs half a kilogram and is made of copper, There have also been many bidders but Rifai hasn't let go yet. “Harganya masih belum sesuai dengan nilai histori pistol kuno itu,” ucap bapak dua anak itu.
The man who also likes to wear cowboy hats admits, for now there are not as many fans of antiques as there used to be. The people who come to his place are mostly officials and cultural people. For the general public and young people rarely come to bid on the antiques of his collection.
“Saya hanya menjual barang yang menurut saya layak untuk dijual. If the thing has a high history value I better keep it,” ungkap pria yang pensiun pada tahun 2015 that.
Some of the antiques from his collection have also been bought up by tourists from England. An Englishman named Mr Andrew bought up household furniture such as Oseng cots, ancient lamp, and an ancient table.
“Saya juga pernah diajak ke Inggris tapi saya menolak karena masih terikat dengan pekerjaan PNS,” papar dosen yang masih mengajar di Universitas Terbuka (UT) That Banyuwangi.
For now, all of his antique collectibles are still usable and well maintained. Rifai also still wants to find some other collections of antiques. “Saya masih ingin melengkapi koleksi barang antik. Because my hobby is happy with various antique and ancient items,” tandas Rifai.(radar)