Beads have always traveled and the history of ancient trade can often be documented by the finding of beads. This is the story of such travel and trade.
When we saw this strand it was obvious that these beads were genuinely old but we have not seen such beads from Indonesian sources nor in books, so we bought them simply because they were intriguing and irresistible.
I have been reading research on trade in the area between China and the Mediterranean and I thought maybe this was how these beads arrived in Indonesia, but no, a friend of ours bought them when he was making the Hadj (the pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim needs to make at least once in their life). While there, he met a pilgrim from Egypt who had bought this strand of old eye beads to trade to fund his trip. This trading in beads is what has been happening for millennia.
Bead research is still in its early days. In previous times beads have been looked upon by researchers as insignificant. Now we know that as they are almost the earliest decorations that humans used and are usually of durable materials, so they give archaeologists evidence of trade and contact between different peoples and insights into their culture. An example of this is the recent report of a discovery of a Baltic amber bead in the Iberian peninsular from a site that is dated 3600 BC.
Once we arrived home I began to look on the internet and in the library. I found that there are very similar eye beads illustrated in a chapter in Magical Ancient Beads where Maud Spaer dates them as being from Egypt. Ptolemaic era, possibly as early as 600 BC.
This gave me a lead, and subsequently, I found two examples in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York with beads that closely resemble our strand.
Late Ptolemaic Beads (3rd to 6th cent BC) from the Met 10.130.3041.
And then this strand below, sold by Christie's in 2008, was dated by them between 600 BC and 400 AD.
This other strand from the Met of very similar beads. described as 1st to 4th-century Roman Egyptian beads.
String of 27 beads 1st-4th cent Roman Egypt.
Metropolitan Museum access No.10.130.3033
Beautiful as they are with the ravages of time, our beads needed to be combined with other old beads to enhance their beauty and make them into wearable necklaces. This is what Veronica did:
If you look along the necklace from the central fine old Balinese wirework bead there are Chinese glass imitation coral beads, possibly 18th - 19th century. In the strand on one side is a translucent hexagonal bicone and on the other an opaque octagonal bead, both 1st millennia Java. To more old Balinese wirework beads, dark blue/green beads where the oxidized glass has been removed. The turquoise blue beads are Chinese, said to be from the Ming period, and have been found through excavation.
]]>I first discovered the non-verbal language of batik on a visit we made to the renowned batik maker Go Tik Swan, a man held in such high regard by President Sukarno that he was made a cultural advisor to the government of Indonesia and by the Sultan of Surakarta that he bestowed the Javanese title KRT Hardjonagoro.
We discovered Go Tik Swan's work when we went to his shop in the Ambarrukmo Hotel in Jogyakarta. Although his batik was costly they were so fine that we had to buy one and which Veronica then made into a dress.
This is the batik we bought And this is the dress she made
The next year again another and then another, but in 1987 on our annual excursion the shop had closed. With a little research, we found out that he lived in Solo and so the next day we took a car and made a visit. I wore a simple shirt made from an old patchwork pattern batik. The patchwork batik serves two purposes. Firstly they can be a sampler of various patterns, but more importantly, they express humility since they are designed to look like the cloth of a humble person, perhaps a mendicant. Go Tik Swan read much more into my choice of dress
This tulis (hand-waxed) batik is an example of the patchwork design symbolizing humbleness.
We were received with gracious hospitality by KRT Hardjonagoro and he allowed me to photograph his atelier and compound but he insisted that we should buy only one piece of batik, his Kembang Bangah motif. As you can see, it is a very subtle design.
Distant and closeup of the Kembang Bangah batik motif
Where he had been a prominent advisor on Indonesian culture to President Sukarno, the Suharto regime sidelined him. His response was to design this batik about which he said, “ Bangbangah is a flower that grows in sewage. Because it blooms in dirty and smelly places, it is shunned by people".
This work was a protest and an expression of disappointment towards the cultural decline that he saw occurring in the New Order government.
Years ago I was told this story which also illustrates the wordless conversations:
A young man wished to marry a well-born girl but before proposing to her he had to ask her father's permission to do so. Preparing to visit his prospective father-in-law he put on a sarong whose pattern indicated the purpose of his visit. The father did not want that union to occur. Javanese do not like to say no, so when the young suitor presented himself the father put on a batik which said that he would not permit it and a polite conversation ensued in which the main subject matter was not mentioned so embarrassment was avoided.
This is the first of several articles on batik that I plan. One will be on our visit to Go Tek Swan. Another expanding on the language of batik
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This necklace is made up of small beads found in Java. The technique for each one varies but essentially they are made from fused millefiore glass canes which have been cut and then fused around a mandrel. (A mandrel is a metal bar that serves as a core around which the glass may be cast, molded, or otherwise shaped.)
These beads came to us from a dealer who is in contact with tukang antik, those people who find buried treasures. This is a secretive trade so details of exactly how and where they were found are hard to come by, but our belief is that they date from the first millennium AD.
Manufacturing techniques for making the canes for millefiore.
The millefiori technique involves the production of glass canes or rods, known as murrine with multicolored patterns which are viewable only from the cut ends of the cane. The murrine is made by heating coloured glass to the point it becomes plastic. A drop of the molten glass is then taken out of the crucible and is stretched until it becomes a long, thin rod. These rods are bundled together in a cane, the the cross section of which gives the desired pattern. The murrine rod is then heated in a furnace and pulled until thin while still maintaining the cross section's design. It is then cut into beads or discs when cooled.
Murrine production first appeared in the Middle East more than 4,000 years ago but was rediscovered in Venice in the 16th century.
Details of the beads in this necklace
The simplest example in this necklace is the white bead second from the left. The cane had a red rod in its center around which white glass was wrapped, then a thin layer of blue glass and finally a final layer of white glass before being cut into segments and fused around a mandrel. In this instance you can see the horizontal fusion line. While it was still hot this bead was shaped to be round <!-- @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } A:link { so-language: zxx } -->
The next bead in this picture above is made of four segments. These have been fused side by side with the bead hole running between the segments. In the two examples in the following image we are looking at the side view in which you can see the fusion lines.
Eye Beads
The central bead in this picture is an eye bead in which the 'eye is applied to a base bead of green opaque glass.
Eye beads are Beads ornamented with spots or other circular designs that we believe represented eyes represent a very large proportion of all beads made in antiquity.
The earliest glass eye beads, from the 1st millennium BC were made by placing .a spot on a contrasting ground, or a spot with contrasting rings. This ‘spot and ring’ design—occasionally a spot alone—made in glass and added to a basic glass bead eventually became the standard type of glass eye bead.
Around the 7th century BC, the stratified technique became most common, where the craftsman made the eye and its ring by applying pre-made disks of decreasing size on top of each other. A broken stratified eye bead shows all these layers (or ‘strata’) in cross-section. Stratified eyes can be made in several manners. The layers can be built right on the bead, first applying the outer ring, then a middle ring, then the center of the eye. This is very difficult because one is working with hot, softened glass and shapes are difficult to maintain. Alternately, the whole stratified eye could be pre-made, then applied onto the base bead, which presumably provided more control. The eye could be pre-made face up, or face down, letting the softened ring disks sag around the inner layers. Eventually, craftsmen pre-manufactured whole strips of several eyes that were inserted as a row on the base bead.
During the 3rd century a faster eye forming method gained the favour of the more technologically advanced workshop: the mosaic eye. Once a shop had the know-how to manufacture stocks of mosaic cane with concentric circles, it was much faster to insert a slice of that mosaic cane into a base bead than to manufacture eyes individually. Not all shops were able to produce mosaic cane (or purchase pre-made mosaic cane) from others, and so both techniques remained in use.
The eye symbol has always played an important role in magic beliefs and practices. Eye beads were commonly seen as apotropaic [apotropaic: having the power to prevent evil or bad luck], their primary function being that of protecting against the ‘Evil Eye.’. . . Seen from a more general perspective, the Evil Eye concept can be regarded as symbolizing the fears and anxieties we all face. It is indeed encountered in diverse cultures and periods of time. . . Even so, there may have been instances in which eye beads were appreciated more for their decorative value. Any symbol in use for a long time is likely to become part of convention and tradition and lose some of its magical application in the process.
We have to guess at the technique used here and my guess is that the eye was formed using a lampwork method.of applying the color.
Face beads
There are several face beads in this necklace. Once again face beads have been made since at least the 2nd cent BC in both Roman and Ptolemaic cultures. The examples in this necklace are possibly made by applying a disc from the mosaic cane containing the face onto a red base, however I cannot rule out that again it is segments of a cane fused together.
Traditional mosaic beads
Finally, there are several brown and white mosaic beads which are rectangular canes that have been segmented and fused.
In the Corning Museum there is a similar mosaic bead from the Roman era (2nd cent) which had a face included.
]]>This is a swallow theme necklace of gold plated silver set with intan diamonds from Minangkabau people of Sumatra. It is hard to date precisely but most probably it is from the '20s or '30's. It is typical of the Minangkebau jewellery in that it is quite showy in that it is made with a high degree of artistry and metal working skill.
The swallow is a symbol of faithful love. In the west it also symbolizes safe return home, but I have not been able to confirm if this applies also to the Minangkebau.
We are lucky to have found this piece. If it was from gold the probability is that it would have been melted down and the gold repurposed.
The Minangkebau people and culture
The Minangkebau were originally in the highlands of West Sumatra and are believed by early historians to have been the cradle of the Malay race. In the 12th century they were Tantric Buddhists with links to the Singhasari and later the Majapahit Kingdom. In the 16th century Islam began to be adopted.
They were rich, being a source of gold which they traded both east and west. In the 17th century they traded with the Dutch East India Company. As the production of gold began to diminish in the 19th century, they maintained their wealth through the production of coffee, spices and other agricultural products.
Traditionally the Minangkabau are a matrilineal culture. A young boy, for instance, has his primary responsibility to his mother's and sisters' clans. I have been told, and this is oral information rather than academic, that before they are accepted as a husband the young men must leave the home, going away to make their fortune before being acceptable to their brides.
The Necklace
This necklace consists of a central medalion with rose cut diamonds. The medalion has a main stone surrounded by seven smaller stones. Each bird is set with four small gemstones and there are an additional twelve stones set into the rosettes along the necklace and in the pendants.
Swallows are a motif symbolising faithful love and a safe return home, and a necklace such as this is worn by the bride at her wedding.
The stones
The stones are hand cleaved, rose cut diamonds called intan, The stones here are very shiny and of high quality. The local name for such stones is intan or berlian.
The difference between rose cut and brilliant cut diamonds is that rose cut diamonds have no pavilion (ie. they are flat with no ‘tail’) so they always look bigger than a brilliant cut diamond for the same carat weight. In diamond speak, the rose cut diamond has the biggest spread (surface area) for the same carat weight of any cuts of diamonds but they do not 'flash in the same way as a brilliant cut diamond will.
Antique Rose cut diamond earrings showing the irregularity of the facets.
Straits Chinese origin
Hand cleaved diamonds reveal techniques of hand-cutting, with uneven facets at the crown of the diamond. The Western rose cut diamond has come long and far, the facets being much more regular, the ‘Asian’ rose cut remains random and raw. It is this primitive look much desired by those of us who know.
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Tatebin from our collection 115 X 45 cm. Showing a typical boat. On the deck are more smaller vessels (? lifeboats)This piece we acquired from a French lady who had lived in Jakarta in the '50s and early '60s. The colors are all organic dyes.
Tatebin are smaller versions of the palepai, the fabled ships cloth, so called because of the motif of a ship which is central to the design. The symbolism of the design is not well understood but it is hypothesized that the ship motif represents the transition from one realm of life to the next, for instances from boyhood to manhood or from being single to married and also represents the final transition to the afterlife.
The use of the long Palepai was restricted to the aristocrats of the culture called penjimbang who were the descendants of the village founder or chief. The smaller tatebin could be used by those of lesser rank, but who still occupied a high status witin the community.
These cloths were woven in a small area of South Sumatra by the the Paminggir, Krui, Abung and Pesisir peoples. living near Samangka and Lampung bay
The oldest surviving examples of Lampung textiles date back to the eighteenth century,but some scholars believe that weaving may have its origin in the first millennium AD.
The hook motif which we see in the prow and stern is one that is shared with many different cultures in South east Asia and a study of the motifs used in ikat weaving showed that these diverse traditions have a common ancestor amongst neolithic cultures the Asian mainland, and parallels exist between the patterns of textile weaving descent for the Austronesian group. There is another widely held theory that the weaving motifs originated in the late Bronze Age Dong-Son culture (500 BC - 400AD), but studies of the motifs used in the bronzes is not consistent with this.
Ref: Buckley CD (2012) Investigating Cultural Evolution Using Phylogenetic Analysis: The Origins and Descent of the Southeast Asian Tradition of Warp Ikat Weaving.
Woven using a technique called supplementary weave of the warp, in which the design is created by floating extra wefts over the ground weave without disturbing the structure of the weave. Wefts are inserted along the same passage as the main weft, and then worked backwards and forwards to create the design. This is carried out on the loom, and called brocading.
Following the 1883 eruption of Karkatoa when hundreds of thousands died and many villages were destroyed, some accounts say that Palepai ceased then, but actually the production of these textiles continued until the 1920s when the increasing importance of Islam and the collapse of the pepper trade brought production to a halt.
Today Lampung textiles are highly prized by museums and collectors alike.
]]>The name Jatim is an abbreviation of Java Timor ( East Java ) and was coined as a name for a particular type of beads found in grave-sites in East Java. These beads were made in the first millenuium, most probably between 400 and 900AD. Ancient Jatim produced in Java are divided into four sub-groups:
• Mosaic beads which have been made using the millefiore technique in which a thin layer of preformed cane slices are applied over over a monochrome core,
• Small and large beads known as pelangi, or rainbow, beads because of their distinctive pattern of combed stripes. Pelangi beads typically have either two or four colors.
• Small (usually 0.7 to 1.0 cm diameter) spiral-striped beads.
• Monochrome beads, usually yellow, with an outer layer of better-quality glass over a rough glass core.
Green and white mosaic Jatim bead
These beads show the use of two techniques, millefiore and combing
The second type of Jatim bead is called pelangi (lit. rainbow). The pattern is of stripes of glass have been combed onto the surface of the bead.
An example of a pelangi bead in the bicone form
Another method used was to wind the colored canes around the bead.
Wound bead
There is evidence of extensive trade between the Byzantium (Eastern Roman Empire centred on Constantinople) and the Sasian (Neo-Persian Empire, 224 to 651AD), and the Indonesian bead making style was influence the the Roman mosaic and millefiori beads.
Evidence of these influences is to be found by the analysis of the glass used which shows that in many instances the raw materials were from both early Byzantine and Sasanian Persian glass. The trade was not just one way. A Jatim bead made in Java has been found in excavations early Byzantine Red Sea port of Berenike, Egypt and in the other direction in tombs in Japan and Korea, (9)
Jatim beads in some categorizations also include the hexagonal bicone shaped beads that we call Buddha beads
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Miss Wallace was a customer who had an extraordinary fine taste in art, in particular she loved batik. She was the aunt of one of my patients, Jane, also was a customer. Miss Wallace was a solitary person, not young, and one could feel that she preferred her own company.
She lived in a terrace house on the East Melbourne side of Punt road with her beloved cats. She had never married.
She would walk to our place from her home when she came calling rather than taking the tram, always dressed elegantly, carrying an exquisite, ageing hand bag that demonstrated her fine, individualist taste.
Slim and with a refined walk, she was an eccentric. She never wore make-up and let the hairs on her chin grow, which by the time that we knew her had formed a fairly long beard. Her appearance, or what others might think of it did not disturb her.
One day she arrived with a silk coat that she wanted to sell. A Chinese embroidered coat of black silk with a blue silk lining.
She told us that her mother bought this coat in Raffles Hotel in Singapore when they traveled there in the 1920's. It is for a small woman and it fitted Veronica, so Veronica bought it. Now Veronica is ready to sell it.
We did not see Miss Wallace for a while after this and thought that perhaps age had caught up with her, but Jane came one day and told us that her house had caught fire one night and both Miss Wallace and her cats had died from smoke inhalation.
]]>Old Balinese woodcarving of Bidadari
Bidadari are the Indonesian evocation of the apsaras from Indian mythology. They are beautiful, supernatural female beings, youthful and elegant, and superb in the art of dancing. They dance to the music made by the Gandharvas, The court musicians if Indra, usually in the palaces of the gods. They entertain and sometimes seduce gods and men.
An image from the Mahabrata. Arjuna meditating. Here he is being tempted by the nymphs sent by Indra. Notice the two erotic nymphs in the lower part of the painting trying to seduce the servants Australian Museum No: E74247
As ethereal beings who inhabit the skies, they are often depicted taking flight, or at service of a god, they may be compared to angels, heavenly maidens that live in the savaloka or in celestial palace of the god Indra.
In the first millennia in Indonesia the depiction of these heavenly maidens was much more related to the Indian concept. Later, as often happened they were modified,especially in Bali where a reverence for the past is blended with contemporary creativity.
The name Bidadari is a medieval Indonesian iteration of the Hindu Aspara being conflated with the 'vidyadharis' (from the Sanscrit vidhya, 'knowledge'; dharya, 'having, bearer, or bringer'). 'Vidyādhara' literally means 'possessed of science or spells', and refers to 'a kind of supernatural being ... possessed of magical power' or 'fairy' according to Monier-Williams Dictionary.
Apsara floating in clouds with birds from Borobudur gallery 1, 9th century, photo ca. 1900 Leiden University Libraries
Reproduction of a 9th cent Apsara.
Balique collection
In Bali now they are represented in the sacred dance sanhyng dedari amongst other ceremonies and dances.
Although the contemporary legong dancers are not thought to represent bidadari, the legong of Ketewel village in Gianyar traces its origins back to around 1825 when a prince named Dewa Karna Agung saw beautiful heavenly nymphs dancing the legong in a vision whilst he was in deep meditation in the local temple, following which he recreated this vision using prepubescent girls to represent the nymphs.
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This example of a khakkhara is from Central or East Java. Above the handle is a lotus leaf from which spring eight fantastical rhinoceros. In the mouths of each is a small metal ball which jingles when the staff is shaken. They support another flat shaped bell, again with a ball inside. Above this are four Buddhas sitting in meditation around a four-sided stupa.
The symbolism incorporated in this object is complicated and I can only speculate according to my contemporary knowledge as there is no written record but I think that the four Buddhas are Amoghasiddhi in the North, Aksobhya in the East, Ratnasambhava in the South and, Amitabha in the West. Within the stupa is the principle Buddha Vairocana, not depicted by a figure but invisible representing ultimate enlightenment.
The eight rhinoceros represent the eight directions of the compass.
The Buddha's instructions for monks to carry a khakkhara can be found in the Sarvastivada vinaya, but the earliest written account of khakkhara we owe to the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Yi Jing who traveled between China, Indonesia and India in the years 661 to 695.
There is an illustration of the type of khakkhara that we have in the 12th century sandstone panel held by the Boston Museum of Fine Art which shows a scene from the Ramayana in which Ravana, disguised as an itinerant priest attempts to seduce Sita.
Function
A khakkhara is a staff that wandering monks were instructed to carry, striking the ground with each step making a sound to scare off small creatures like spiders and snakes that might tread on. It also served to ward off dangerous animals such as tigers or venomous snakes.
The ringing of the staff may also alert donors within earshot of the monk's presence, as monks traditionally remain silent while collecting alms.
In some traditions such as the Shaolin the khakkhara was used as a weapon.
Other uses are as a rhythmical device for chants or dance performance
The bodhisattva Ksitigarbha is usually depicted with a khakkhara in his right hand with which he uses as a weapon to force open the gates of hell, lightening the darkness with the wish-fulfilling jewel in his left hand.
Ksitigarba with his khakkhara. Image from buddhaweekly.com
Design
The basic design of a khakkhara is a wooden staff topped by a metal finial. The design usually seen in China, Korea and Japan have one or more metal loops, with smaller metal rings bound by each loop Various numbers of loops and rings are employed, with each number being assigned symbolic significance on the basis of a variety of Buddhist numerical formulas. Historical examples include staffs with one, two, or four loops and four, six, or twelve rings on each loop.
Bronze finials with metal loops were also known in Java and an example of the Chinese style design exists in the museum in Berlin, but in Java an adaptation was made as in the example that we have.
Finial of a khakkhara, East Java, 12th-13th century AD.
Ethnogical Museum, Berlin.
There is an example of a khakkhara very similar to ours in the Linden Museum, Stuttgart.
Finial with bells, Linden Museum, said to be c.11th cent. 19cm tall.
Exhibited in The Sculpture of Indonesia, National Museum of Art, Washington 1990
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Traditional Javanese terracotta Loro Blonyo
Loro Blonyo are a couple, Dewi Sri and her consort Sadono. Loro Blonyo is Javanese literally translating as 'two become one', but arguably in this relationship Dewi Sri is the more significant member.
Derived from the Hindu goddess Sri Devi, the female form of Vishnu and goddess of prosperity, she evolved in Central Java as a depiction of prosperity, fertility, and beauty.
An Indianized depiction of Sri Devi holding a rice sheaf
There are early representations of Devi Sri in bronze dating form the Central Javanese Period (A.D. 650-950). In these Dewi Sri is depicted with a stalk of rice and in a gift-bestowing posture. This example below, from the Tropen Museum is interesting in that it has many features of Buddhist iconography. The posture, the hand gesture and the way she holds the sheaf is like a Tara, the female incarnation of the Buddha.
Dewi Sri is the goddess of rice and all fruit and vegetables that grow in the air. Sadono is the god of all root vegetables, food that grows underground like say taro or ginger.
She is an example of how the Islamic faith in Java has been able to adapt to include the traditions of its predecessors, Hinduism and before that Animism. Dewi Sri has become the embodiment of beauty, virtue, and fertility of the bride. As well as this she is still a focus of ceremonies performed in Java to ensure a bountiful harvest. Combined with Sadono the two represent the bride and groom in the celestial sphere
As time progressed Loro Blonyo were made from material to hand, both wood or terracotta rather than the more technically challenging bronze.
Today Loro Blonyo are an important part of the wedding ceremony in Java where they are placed on the krobongan (an elaborate ceremonial bed or couch). Bowls, platters and lamps are placed about the goddess and her consort for their comfort. They hold water, food, and sirih pinang, the ingredients for making the betel quid. An oil lamp in the center is kept lit at all times.
During wedding ceremonies the real bride and groom, who copy the dress of Sri and Sadono in the hope of receiving the goddess's blessings for a prosperous and fruitful marriage replace them.
Both bride and groom are clad in fine batiks, their skin rubbed with a yellow paste made from herbs and sweet-smelling flowers. The bride's hair is to cut to resemble the petals of the lotus bud, the lotus symbolizing perfect beauty and purity. A dark green mark on her brow pointed to the inner core of her being. Bride and bridegroom sit solemnly and godlike in front of the krobongan during the last moments of the wedding rites.
This is a wedding photo of friends of mine who had a traditional Javanese wedding in the family's village in East Java.
In Jogyakarta, Dewi Sri sits on the right, with her consort on the left. In neighboring Surakarta, their positions are reversed. In Jogyakarta, the couple sit on their heels, while in Surakarta they sit cross-legged.
Rare pair of very old terracotta Loro Blonyo that would have been used in a village ceremony. 20 cm tall
The village depictions of Loro Blonyo are sometimes quite primitive. Such pairs are much more likely to be the genuine thing, made for and used in the wedding ceremony. Nowadays most examples of Loro Blonyo one sees for sale, usually made from wood are made for the tourist market,
There is a Balinese equivalent to the Loro Blonyo. The instances of this are very understated and in my experience private ceremonies.A crudely made couple are fabricated from the mud of a rice field wall and offerings are made by the couple. On the one occasion that I happened upon such a ceremony, I asked about it and was told that it is a Telu Bulan (3 month) ceremony. The couple was very shy and I did not want to probe deeper.
Balinese Telu Bulan figures
Whatever, a Loro Blonyo pair makes a wonderful symbolic addition to home decoration.
This is an ancient 'male Mamuli shown to us in 1985. Solid gold, about x 8 cm depicting two buffalo
The distinctive ornaments known as mamuli play an essential role in the elaborate ceremonial gift exchanges practiced on important occasions by the people of Sumba Island in eastern Indonesia. In earlier times, when the Sumbanese practiced artificial elongation of the earlobes, mamuli were worn as ear ornaments, but today they hang around the neck as pendants.
Mamuli are a fertility amulet and a part of the exchange of gifts prior to a wedding and form a part of a family's Adat treasures, which are only displayed on special occasions.
The Mamuli represents the female form but the Mamuli are further categorised as male or female depending on a set of secondary characteristics namely the width of flare and additional adornment at the base as masculine or feminine. The wider and more ornate pieces often featuring tiny animal or human forms are of the masculine category.
The more elaborate versions of the type are favoured in the East of the Sumba island.
In Sumbanese culture, precious metals are believed to be of celestial origin. The sun is made of gold and the moon and stars of silver. Gold and silver are deposited on earth when the sun and moon set or a shooting star falls from the sky. Golden objects signify wealth and divine favor. Kept among the sacred relics housed in the treasuries of Sumbanese clans, mamuli serve, in part, to maintain contact with powerful ancestors and spirits. They are rarely removed from their hiding places lest their dangerous supernatural powers kill onlookers or cause natural disasters.
Sumbanese religious specialists use Mamuli to assist in contact with ancestors and spirits. Some examples of Mamuli are considered too powerful to be displayed.
The practice of ear lobe elongation is no longer prevalent and these beautiful pieces are more likely to be seen used as pendants, or sewn to clothing.
Thanks to Susan Corbett for much of this information
Images of Mamuli
Four precious, ancient gold female Mamuli
Two gold male Mamuli
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The term “Indo-Pacific” was coined by Peter Francis Jr., who defined them as small, drawn, monochrome, glass beads. This is almost identical to the definition of seed beads (small, monochrome, glass beads), with the very important distinction that Indo-Pacific beads are drawn, whereas seed beads are sometimes coiled beads. Another name given these beads is Trade Wind Beads as they spread through South East Asia on the wind.
A selection if Indo-Pacific beads showing some of the colors found. The orange beads are called Mutisalah, the dark blue and translucent green are probably of Javanese or Sumatran manufacture. The red beads are wound and so probably originate in China. These are not strictly defined as Indo-Pacific but the debate continues.
Francis was involved in archeological research in Arkimedu (now Pondicherry) where the Indo-Pacific beads were made as early as 300 BC. Bead making ceased in Arkimedu about 200 AD, by which time other centers had established manufacturing beads, namely Mantai in Sri Lanka (1st to 10th cent), Klong Thom, Southern Thailand (2nd to 6th cent), Oc-eo, Vietnam (2nd to 7th cent)
We can now sketch a tentative historic reconstruction of the industry. It
began in Arikamedu, which probably held a monopoly for some time. When Arikamedu was abandoned in the 3rd century A.D, bead makers went to Oc-eo and Mantai. Work stopped at Oc-eo in the 7th century, and bead makers Mantai made Indo-Pacific beads until invaded in the 10th century.
Carswell suggested that Mantai refugees then went to Nagapattinam, the chief port of the south Indian Chola dynasty which was and a likely production for a few centuries. J. Lavanaha said in 1593 that there is a record of these beads were taken to East Africa from Nagapattinam by the Portuguese. Subsequent events, particularly European domination, were most likely responsible for the destruction of the industry in Southeast Asia,
By the 7th century Indo-Pacific beads were being made in Palembang, Sumatra, possibly by Indian refugees also, or using techniques brought by them. At this point of time the archeology is still under-explored.
Old Indo-Pacific beads still circulate in South East Asia and since they were manufactured in several places dating them can be difficult. In Indonesia beads are found in funerary sites.
It is speculated that bead manufacture ceased somewhere around the 12th century as Indo-Pacific beads are rarely found in graves later than that. Many of the later beads are wound beads, believed to have originated in China.
Bead manufacture has recommenced in many places now, not least Indonesia, China and India so it is best when looking at them to divide them into categories of new and old. An old bead will have signs of wear, sometimes they are oxidized and one may see evidence of them having been in the ground.
This necklace demonstrates the variable size seen, ranging from less than 1 mm up to 3 mm. Green is an unusual color for Indo-Pacific beads. This is No. 129 in my catalog.
This strand of blue beads, some opaque and some translucent show many of the signs of age, namely oxidation of the surface from long burial and wear from being worn.
]]>As with all things relating to Balinese ceremonies, an outsider looking in find endless explanations that confuse rather than illuminate. Whenever one gets information, it is wise to say that that is for a specific area. You will find that the information may be different in another part of Bali. In some places they are called menjangan, which is derived from the old Javanese word for deer. In other places it is called kidang, which is a close to the modern Indonesian kijang (deer).
In about 1975 we visited Ida Bagus Tilem in his studio in Mas. Tilem was the son of Ida Bagus Nana, the legendary woodcarver of the 30's and although Tilem was a fabulous carver in his own right he also oversaw a studio in which only the best carvers were engaged. Behind the studio he had an extensive shed in which he stored many old kidang. I asked if we could buy one but he refused us saying, “These represent Balinese culture. If I sell this and it goes overseas that part of our culture will be lost”.
In a recent conversation, I asked an old friend, Nyoman Supirna from Banjar Tinungan in the district of Apuan about the deer. He told me That only special temples called sanggah seluangan have a deer. The deer is symbolic of the descent from Majapahit ancestors with the deer head representing the power of Majapahit.
In our house we have collected deer without realizing all of their cultural resonances, but now, for me the deer is part of our connections with the spirit world of Bali.
You can read more about the origins of this belief in the origin stories at the end of this article.
Kidang in a home temple Sangga Seluangan
This is a small Kidang from our collection. (28 cm)
This humble little deer is at least 80 years old an came from a family temple. The head was exposed to the weather giving it its eroded look, while the hindquarters we under shelter.
This mejangan was made to hang on the wall. 50 cm long with real deer horn.
We bought this deer at least 40 years ago in a little stall in Den Pasar near the Bird Market. It was painted in a crude silver paint. When I got home I decided to strip off the silver back to bare wood, however as the silver came off the original decoration was revealed.
This kijang is a little primitive. Painted blue. When we found it, it had lost its tail and ears which I have replaced. In our house its function is to sit on our dining table while we eat.
Doorstop Menjangan
This is a small and primitif menjangan which came to us in this very eroded state having been outside in the weather for a long time. In those early days, many Balinese did not regard old things as having value and thought us odd for wanting it.
Origin stories
Ancient Vedic concepts and the Majapahit
In Indian mythology, the constellation of Orion is Mrigasiras or the deer-headed. It is the head of Brahma in the form of a stag, which was struck off by Siva. The story goes like this:
Sandhya, the goddess personified by twilight, was the daughter of Brahma and wife of Siva. When Brahma attempted violence on Sandhya, she changed herself into a deer and fled across the evening sky to escape his evil intentions. Assuming the form of a stag, Brahma pursued her through the sky. When Siva saw this, he shot an arrow, which cut off the head of the stag. Re-assuming his own form, Brahma paid homage to Siva. The arrow remains in the sky in the sixth lunar mansion, called Ardra, and the stag’s head remains as the fifth mansion, Mriga-siras.
Orion, the deer's head as an astronomical calendar
Orion is the constellation that the people of Bali observe for the purpose of correcting their lunar calendar. Farming activities used to be scheduled according to the rising of Orion’s belt. The three very bright stars in the belt of Orion are called bentang kidang. Literally, the word means roe-buck, a small variety of deer.
The first sighting of bentang kidang and bentang kartika on the eastern horizon signified the beginning of the annual farming year. Though the stars may be invisible, the astronomical cycles are unvarying. Usually the bentang kartika appears two weeks earlier than bentang kidang when the sun is in the northern hemisphere. According to the Baduy, at that time, the soil is ‘cold’ (tiis). Conversely, when bentang kidang disappears over the western horizon and for approximately two months cannot be seen, it is inappropriate to plant rice, because the soil is too ‘hot’ (panas), and insects (kungkang) inhabit the ‘present world’, (buana tengah). “The position in the heavens of this kidang constellation regulates the time for cutting forest for yearly paddy clearings.”[21]
This originated from the ancient calendar for agriculture in Java which too was scheduled according to the heliacal rising of Orion's belt.
The various positions of bentang kidang are reflected in the following verses:
When kidang first appears, a chopping knife should be used;
When kidang appears in a position similar to that of the sun at 8.00-10.00 a.m, vegetation should be burned;
When kidang appears overhead or sideways to the west, rice should be planted;
When kidang disappears, insect pests will appear, and rice planting should stop.”
The legend of Empu Kuturan
Mpu Kuteran was a Javanese holy man who came to Bali in the 10th century. He arrived first at Pulau Menjangan (Deer Island) where he was greeted by a deer. This deer guided him to the holy places around Bali and Empu Kuturan established the temples at Uluwatu, Pura Dalem Sakenan, Serangan, and Besakih which are among the holiest in Bali to this day.
The legend of Danghyang Kapakisan
Danghyang Kapakisan, another holy man from Java in the 14th century, fathered a child by a widadari (heavenly nymph). However, she left when the baby was born so a substitute mother, a deer, suckled the child. He grew up and fathered another child from a widadari and this began the lineage of noble households in many places in Bali.
The Kapakisan established a kingdom initially in Gelgel, later moving to Klungkung.
A person claiming genealogical ties to the Kapakisan kingdom is called a wong Majapahit and the deer is a symbol of this inheritance. The deer headed shrine is a recognition of the ancestry and of the deer 'mother'.
Further reading:
Perceptions of Paradise, Images of Bali in the Arts. Garret Kam. p.114
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A necklace of translucent green Buddha beads with gold beads assembled by Veronica.
In 1992 we were shown a strand of such beads when we visited a dealer in Jogjakarta. He told us that they were found in the Dieng plateau. I don't remember why we did not buy them, most probably because they were too expensive and at that time we didn't know much. However, Veronica could not forget them and ever since we have kept our eyes and ears open to find more.
They are uncommon they do come our way and once a tukang antik knows of our interest he uses his inside knowledge to source them. A disconcerting thing in this search is that although they are rare when a trader has one bead, he often has more. I believe that they have come from a burial site or a temple cache.
This picture is of a recent purchase of a strand of beads. They are translucent green but as a result of long inhumation the soil has penetrated the beads.
Pale green, translucent Buddha beads. The seller has polished them but cannot disguise the effects of their long inhumation.
Originally beads such as these were made from natural crystals that were drilled in the Indian bead manufacturing sites which have been dated to the first millennium BC and were then traded along with the Indian trade networks that extended from the Mediterranean to the far east.
The technology for drilling these crystal beads, developed in India is incredibly complex and difficult using a hand drill and grinding paste. As a result, they would most probably have been both rare and expensive, even at the time of their production. There is evidence of such bead making later in the 2nd century BC from sites in what now is Thailand, possibly by Indian craftsmen who migrated or were seconded.
We have two examples of these crystals, both found in Java, which Veronica has incorporated into her necklaces. We date these as probably first millennia AD.
Long crystal (10 cm)
Rock crystal hexagonal bicone incorporated into a necklace.
Catalogue No 44 in Historic Beads website
There is later evidence of glass replicas of these precious beads being made in the Cambodian and Thai bead making sites in about 200 AD. Glover mentions that a number of the translucent glass beads at Ban Don Ta Phet were found with cubic, bi-pyramidal, square prismatic or hexagonal prismatic shapes imitating the forms of natural mineral crystals, especially the famous beryl crystals of South India.There is also evidence of the translucent blue and green hexagonal bi-cones being made in Java as a bi-product of the Indo-Pacific bead bead making. These have been found in the megalithic stone grave sites discovered in Java, Sumatra and, Kalimantan.
Even more unusual are beads of this type made from black or opaque glass, but in Java, such beads have been uncovered. I do not have much detail about the sources of these discoveries as the published archeology is scanty.
Bronson has suggested that the hexagonal bicones could have been made at Khlong Thom (Bronson, B. 1986. Glass and beads at Khuan Lukpad, Southern Thailand. Southeast Asian Archaeology 1986: 213–
29 pp222).
What archaeological evidence there is suggests a broad distribution for the making of hexagonal bicone beads, and it is very possible that there were multiple production centers. (Francis, P. Jr. 2002. Asia’s Maritime Bead Trade. 300 B.C. to the Present. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press pp 138-139)
A bead from Museum Pusat, Jakarta. 2.6 cm long
This bead in the collection of the Museum Pusat is said to be of Han dynasty (Chinese 206 BC-220AD). It would have been traded into Java by the nomadic seafarers of that time. Its place of manufacture is still being researched but there is evidence that these beads may have been made in Khao Sam Kaeo, Thailand, however, the research is still in its early days.
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Lions do not exist in Asia and yet they are found in almost all cultures from ancient Persia through to China and in South East Asia. The origin of the Balinese representation of the lion can be seen in Chinese representations of the lion, however, the singa in Bali has a special place in their spiritual iconography and is different from all others in that it has wings.
Antique Chinese lion
In Balinese legend, the lion is the king of the forest. It is a protector and overcomes and counterbalances evil. Although the Balinese singa is a lion, there is a relationship with the Barong Ket.
The singa in Bali has Hindu-Buddhist origins. In Hinduism, the lion is an avatar of Vishnu. In Buddhism, the Buddha sits upon the lion as a throne of consistency, strength, and wisdom, in Bali the singa is distinguished by its relationship to the barong.
House temple Singa Bersayap. H 32 x L 28 x W 17. Old--possibly 50 to 80 years
The singa above is typical of the traditional Balinese singa. It has a ferocious expression, bulging eyes and fierce fangs. It has wings and a flaming mane. The wings may be a result of blending with the mythical Vishnu Garuda or perhaps the barong which also bears a similarity to the Chinese dragon.
In Bali you can see singa in many places. Often a temple kul-kul will have one on each corner holding up the roof structure
Singa in the kuk-kul Pura Madya, Batu Bulan
On the road to Singaraja, past Bedugul which is in the kingdom of Tabanan, one passes through a gate with a rampant singa on each side. To one side of this there is a kul-kul with four singa supporting the roof. The kulkul's purpose is to summon the locals in the event of an intrusion by negative forces.
The kul-kul at at the gateway between the kingdom of Tabanan and Buleleng (Singaraja- note the loudspakers facing into Buleleng to summons the villagers in the event of an intrusion.)
When thinking about the singa I started to look at the many that we have collected over the years. It was not a deliberate 'collection' and yet I find that we have quite a few pieces.
These two painted wooden singa are almost a pair. They take the traditional form. Obviously from the same studio, but if you look carefully, not the same hand.
Singa 3 Ht 32cm x 28cm x 17 cm Singa 4 Ht 30cm x 20cm x 15cm
This next Singa is from our collection. It is not at all like the traditional carving. It is very old and is an example of folk art. Still with the bulging eyes but it does no have the l ferocious snarl, rather it seems to be smiling. Between its feet is a smiling frog. This would example would have had a place in a house temple. Veronica loves this creature and he is for our house.
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Singa 1 Height 30cm x 16cm x 20 cm
Another singa that we have is a stone pedestal for one of the corners of a smallish temple bale, most probably a family temple rather than an important village temple.
This next singa is a small one, carved from a single piece of wood. It sits on Veronicas dressing table and she decorates it with sparkling broaches
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The challenge for a bead maker faces is that the techniques needed are sometimes quite complex and to make something small and wearable using the hot plastic glass is great. Bead makers responded and examples of their invention can be found from as early as 500 BC.
In this article I shall try to illustrate the various types of beads, their history and the techniques used.
Mosaic Face Beads
The revitalization of the mosaic technique by Roman glass makers in the 1st century BC led to the creation of one of the best-known types of mosaic beads: the face bead. The primary feature of these beads is the miniature human faces painstakingly rendered through the cold bundling of rods or the hot working of pre-made parts to form the visage, which was then stretched to make a cane that could produce, in sliced sections, identical faces.
Two Roman face beads. 100BC to 100AD
Face beads were sometimes produced in a spherical shape , with more than one cane slice placed around the center of the bead on a wound matrix, or simply as an individual cane slice that was perforated.
The bead shown here, also Roman, is a square slice of a cane that combines the checkerboard design and the female face, including the shoulders and a necklace. The face and background are slightly off-center against the checkerboard, which covers all four corners of the bead. The bead is complex and distinctive, a true masterpiece of the mosaic technique. Corning Museum access no. 66.1.45
Something like this technique of bead making was also practiced in Java. as illustrated in this bead below which is possibly from the era 600 to 1000AD. When I look at it I suspect that the maker made his cane with the face and then applied that to the red coil bead base,
Javanese face bead. 600 to 1000 AD.The bead has been repaired.
Unfortunately we did not buy this example because it was damaged and also the asking price was too high
This is a bead using the same techniques and of the same age that we DID buy. On a cream colored base bead a cane face and a star have been applied. The stripe is most probably made with a compex cane by lamp work.
This bead is using the mosaic technique all over. This too is a Jatim bead from about 600 years ago.
And then we bought these extraordinary examples. These are small beads 5 mm in diameter. They have been made osing a drawn cane and two segments have been fused together. once again, found in Java. Most probably first millenia.
These three images show the beads and in the bottom image it shows the fused cane
Lamp-work face beads
With lamp-work the design is applied with a heated glass rod to a core of a bead.
This technique has been used since perhaps 500 BC. Best known are the Phoenician face beads from Carthage in which pendants were constructed with curling beards and hair.
Phoenician bead. Corning Museum access No. 68.1.15
I have also found an image of some facebeads made in China in the Tang Dynasty (61 to 907 AD)
5 Tang Dynasty face beads
Our collection
The bead makers of Indonesia use all the old techniques to make beads.
Centerpiece bead for necklace catalogue No 01, an old Javanese face bead, very reminiscent of the Phoenician face beads of the 2nd century BC
In this instance the maker has used a lamp-work technique. First a core bead is made of cream colored glass. The nose and mouth are fabricated with a fine rod of glass melted on to the core. Then the eyebrows and beard by the same technique. When making the hair the bead maker has used the topknot of the face to make a pendant.
The eyes use a lightly different technique common to 'eye beads'. This involves making a bundle of glass rods with blue in the middle, surrounded by white for the eye white and then blue for the eyelid. This rod is then heated and dabbed onto the core. Another technique used is the more simple layering of hot glass rods to build up the eye
This next example is a new bead made in Java which Veronica has used as a centerpiece for a necklace
Modern lamp-work face bead. Cat. No. 113
It is interesting to compare the techniques used in this bead with those from the following image of a Phoenician or Carthaginian bead sold by Bonhams in 2014, said to be 6th to 4th century BC.
Sometimes the features are drawn onto the bead core with a hot glass rod as the one in this necklace Catalogue No. 33 in the collection.
Face bead and carnelian necklace. This face bead has a lineage back to Roman beads or even before, but it was made in Java this century. Catalogue 114
This necklace has four face beads made using various lampwork techniques. There are four beads and eight faces yet each face is individual. It can be seen in more detail on the Historic Beads website, Catalogue 123
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The Majapahit kingdom was established by the prince Vijaya, also known as Krtarajasa, who overthrew the prince of Kadiri, Jayakatwang who had murdered the then Raja, Krtnagara, Vijaya's father-in-law.
According to Chinese records Raja Krtnagara had insulted a Chinese envoy and Kublai Khan sent an punitive expeditionary force to Java but it arrived to the changed situation. Prince Vijaya convinced the Chinese that he was the rightful king and formed an alliance with them.
This next part of the story I have not from books but from oral history in conversations with people in the area many years ago. I suspect that this is more of a legend than historically factual but the dry history you can read elsewhere.
In 1292, Vijaya, with a small force of his own, perhaps one thousand men, bolstered by the authority of the Chinese force which itself was only three hundred warriors, confronted Jayaktwang. Jayakatwang assembled his army and preparation was made to do battle. Vijaya was outnumbered ten to one and was facing defeat, however he had one extra weapon, adat. Adat in Java is the spiritual force, the force of righteousness.
During the night many of the warriors of Jayaktawang stealthily moved across to the encampment of Prince Vijaya so that when dawn came the majority were now on Vijaya's side. Realising that he had no hope Jayaktawang's surrendered and the battle was won without a fight.
So began the era of the Majapahit in 1293.
Centered in East Java around the place now called Trawullen, the power and influence of the kingdom grew. They claimed influence over most of what we now call Indonesia, extending as far as Sumatra and Malacca in the west and Borneo in the East.
The Nusantara Archipelago during the height of Majapahit Empire in XIV century. The red dot is Trowulan; Majapahit capital city. The dark orange area is core realm of Majapahit on eastern part of Java. The light orange area is vassal states of Majapahit mentioned in Nagarakretagama. The pale yellow is outer realm or independent states from Majapahit. The dark cyan is the sea area under influence or effective control of Majapahit. The light cyan is the extent of Majapahit naval expedition.
The kingdom had strong ties with China as evidenced by the many small figurines of Chinese traders we find. There is also evidence of Indian contact, once again seen in the depiction of turbaned travellers.There is very little written about this period and so much of what we know we have to surmise from the many terracotta artefacts that we are still finding in the fields of East Java.
This one is a head of a high official. I am guessing that this may be a portrate of Gajah Madah, the prime minister of Hayam Wuruk. If so, thos dates it to the mid 14th century
Gajah Mada. Catalogue TC 223 Balique Arts of Indonesia
Ht 10.5 x 7 x 8.2cm
Another artifact that we did collect, now sold to a collector in America is a complete frieze of ten bricks showing a procession of a king.
The only written text that we have from the time is the Nagarakretagama or Nagarakrtagama, also known as Desawarñana or Deshavarñana, is an old Javanese eulogy to Hayam Wuruk, a Javanese king of the Majapahit Empire. It was written on lontar as a kakawin by Mpu Prapanca in 1365 (1287 Saka year). The Nagarakretagama contains detailed descriptions of the Majapahit Empire during its greatest extent. The poem affirms the importance of Hindu-Buddhism in the Majapahit empire by describing temples and palaces and several ceremonial observances.
One of the religious practices of the Majapahit royal family described by Prapanca was the "royal walkabout". They visited cornerstones of the empire and paid homage to the ancestors of the king. Possibly this frieze depicts such an event.
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The strand of old and ancient beads, Catalogue 35
In many cultures there are beads that are treasured and passed down through the generations as heirloom beads. When a bead is worn it gains something from the wearer and this 'something' carries forward to the wearer of today. Collectors look for beads for many different reasons. Veronica particularly loves a bead that has a history for it connects her to its past.
This necklace illustrates some of these attributes.
In ancient times beads had a high value and possession of them was a symbol of of power and prestige similar to the possessions of gemstones today. There are archaeological discoveries all over the inhabited world that demonstrate the vast distances that beads would travel thousands of years ago. Today beads still travel and this necklace is an example of how they have traveled from Africa, China, Tibet and, Europe, via Indonesia into Veronica's collection where she has recombined them into this strand.
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Central Jatim mosaic bead flanked by two old possibly Indo-Pacific beads. On the left is a black Venetian eye-bead from Borneo (18th-19th cent) and on the right a Chinese 'coral' glass bead from Tibet. (possibly 18th cent)
Going right to left from the center there is an old dark blue barrel bead, possibly Indo-Pacific, A black Venetian eye-bead and a red Venetian eye-bead traded into Borneo in the 18th century, On either side of the red bead are two Mali Djenne beads ( 700 to 1200 yrs old)
Farther to the left, after the Mali beads there is another mosaic bead and an old Balinese silver bead.
The next center bead in this image is a small 18th-19th cent Venetian millefiore bead found in Borneo
Finally on the left there are two red Chinese 'coral' beads, a blue black and lighter blue Indo-Pacific bead and an old Balinese silver bead.
Going up the right side from the center are similar beads, Chinese coral glass, Venetian eye-bead, Mali Djenn bead and old Balinese silver. At the top of this image is a Venetian striped bead
Towards the end of the right side are three unusual beads.In the center of this picture is a Ming period blue glass bead traded into Nusa Tenggara. It is possible that the Chinese were replicating turquoise, but then again it may have been enough for the bead to be a beautiful blue. Beside this is a Venetian eye bead and a black bead with white stripes. Both between 200 and 300 years old.
C
]]>This is a story of the making of this carving that is called Trungpa Teaching.
Driving in Umadui, Bali, I saw a large slab of suar wood. Suar is a tree that grows large and the timber it produces is very stable. Four meters long and about 1 meter wide, it arrested my attention. It was too large to manage as a single piece so I had it cut in two. Once I had it home I leant it up against a wall I sketched out the picture. The planks are actually upside down from the way that the tree grew.The one on the right is the lower part of the log. In your minds eye put it on top of the one on the left abd turn them over and you will see the inner workings of the tree. Also, look at the natural hollows that gave me guidance as to the picture in the wood.
I am feeling impatient and so start to carve, opening up the hollow under the female figures arm.
I see that the teacher has a sash over his arm and a halo around his head. Although he is masculine, he also without sex. I put a batik scarf into the crook of his arm to se how it looks. The progress so far is in Bali. It is time to pack up and go back to Melbourne. This means shipping it home and there will be months before the carving will progress.
Back in my studio. It is so much easier working with my table and equipment to hand.
As the carving nears completion I have to get a couple of wrought iron hinges engineered as the wood is so heavy they need to be stong. Carving finished it looks like this.
I have carved out his elbow and inserted a piece of teak burl with its natural texture to represent the spiritual flame that expands from all the chakra.
The carving is now ready to finish. First I seal the wood and make a base for painting. Then I paint with a wash of oil paint and make the halo gold.
Finished.
The story depicted is another mystery that can only be told in a personal interaction. Meanwhile, you, dear reader, are free to put your own understanding onto it.
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The Dong Son culture originated in South East Asia about 3000 years ago and was named after the place where a major excavation occurred. It was a bronze age culture and their skill in casting is best demonstrated by the bronze drums which are dated as being from about 600 BC. The drums can be large and are decorated by flying birds, human forms, sometimes frogs and sometimes boats.
As well as the drums we sometimes see axes, daggers and spears, earings, rings and bracelets, and. small mystical animals.
Recent archeology in the North of Bali has discovered trade with India and South East Asia mainland and suggests that possibly bronze casting occurred in Bali in the first century BC. Since the first excavations conducted by Ardika from 1987–1989, and several subsequent seasons at Sembiran and Pacung (1990–2008), large quantities of Indian pottery and evidence of local bronze-casting have suggested the presence of a first century AD harbour site with simultaneous links to India and bronze-casting centres in Mainland Southeast Asia
The first century AD dating for Indian contact proposed by Ardika and
Bellwood (1991), however, was assessed based on the chronology of the Indian pottery and not on radiocarbon dates.
The bronzes were most probably imported, however soon a bronze casting industry was developed in East Java, This is continuous up till the present and we can see a gradual evolution from the simple designs of the early bronzes through to the quite elaborate Mahapahit bronzes of the 14th century.
Over the years we have had Dong Son bronzes brought to us by traveling tukang antik (lit. antique worker) and unfortunately, the exact origin of the objects are opaque, either because they don't know, or because they don't want to say to prevent us from getting close to the source. These are magical pieces and Veronica has collected 3 small pendants which she is now going to make into necklaces with some of her special beads
This is one of her pendants.Bronze Bird 5,5 cm x 4 cm x 2 cm
This will not be the first time that she has used a Dong Son item in a necklace. In that instance she made a necklace using an ear ring to which she had a gold band and loop made for hanging it.
One of the features of the Dong Son bronze is the deep oxidation. the metal has almost changed to glass.
It is conjecture on my part that although much of the bronze described as Dong Son was cast in Tonkin, that part of Indochina we now call Vietnam, it is not inconceivable that they exported the technology as well. Whatever, it was not long after the end of the Dong Son era that elaborate statues were being cast in Indonesia.
A well-known example is the Moon Drum of Pejeng in Bali which is revered for its magical qualities. Many exist on the Island of Alor where they are still used as part of important ceremonial exchanges. The example I use here is from the island of Sumba.
A feature of this drum is a sunburst pattern on the face that scholars have speculated may represent the Northern Star
The Dong Son people were seafarers and traders. Their sea routes took them all through the Islands of Indonesia and elements of their interaction can be seen from Sumatra to Timor, through Borneo and, the Philippines. There is also evidence that overland trade with India also was a significant connection, in which case the trade would have definitely been two way. One scholar even theorizes that there may have been a connection with Scandinavia. Robert von Heine-Geldern, pointed out that as the earliest Bronze Age drums in the world come from the 8th century BC Scandinavia and the Balkans. He suggested that some of the decorative motifs including tangent circles, ladder-motif, meanders, and hatched triangles may have roots in the Balkans. Another frequent feature of the drum is a sunburst pattern on the face that scholars have speculated may represent the Northern Star
Certain relief patterns on the bronzes suggest the “ship of the dead” designs, like those still woven in textiles in both Borneo and Sumatra. We an examples of what could be a dragon ship, possibly a ship of the dead.
Two-headed Dragon ship. Is it possible that this is a Buddha sitting on it?
]]>When we first went to Surabaya we discovered Majapahit terracotta almost by accident. In the 70's Surabaya still had the feel of its colonial past. The hotel that we stayed in was called Hotel Majapahit and had been the Dutch equivalent of the Raffles Hotel in Singapore.
Across the road from Hotel Majapahit was a restaurant that also harked back to colonial times that serving Dutch cakes and sandwiches. The waiter, dressed in Javanese court attire served one approaching the table on his knees.
Down the road was a shop called the Bali Butcher Shop. It too was a strange establishment. One side was a delicatessen with wonderful rye bread baked by Catholic nuns, hams and other European delicacies. On the other side they sold antiques, porcelain, textiles, furniture from past era.
Across the road, the street I think called Basuki Rachmat, was a kampung. Little lanes one person wide with a drain down the center, off which tiny residences were built. Some of these places had converted their front rooms into small shops to sell antiques.
We were brousing in one and Veronica looked at a plastic bucket in which was scraps and shards, just fragments of dusty red clay. Amongst these she saw a face looking out. It was tiny, only 5 cm tall, and she picked it up.
"What is this?" she asked.
"Majopahit, Majopahit," was the reply.
"But, what is Majopahit?" The only reply was the same word. We bought the piece and so started a journey of discovery of Majapahit, the golden era of Indonesian history.
Our first breakthrough was an article in Arts of Asia in 1976 by Roy C Craven (which you can access here https://www.artsofasianet.com/back_issues/back_issue.php?issue_code=1976_sep_oct) and that was followed a couple of years later by a slim book by H.R.A. Muller, Javanese Terracotta Terra Incognita that you can still buy on Amazon. Alternatively, watch this space.
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The silk road was one of the trade routes linking the Middle East wth Asia. Intrepid seafarers sailed fom India across the ocean to Africa. Somehow the ancient trades would travel from Egypt or Mesopotamia to the Northern countries we now call Scandinavia where they traded their glass for amber which was treasured in Egypt because it was regarded as having trapped the sun.
In this image of an Uzbek woman she sits in front of her precious textiles wearing three necklaces that are obviously treasures, and over her shoulders she has an elaborate ornament made out of new seed beads.
For Veronica the bead world is centered on Indonesia which has had beads coming from India in one direction and China in the other for at least 2000 years.
With the arrival of the European from the 17th century beads were traded for spice. Veronica once bought a strand of beads that came to us from Ambon. The story we were told about this strand was that Portuguese privateers had sailed around the Cape Horn arriving to Ambon from the east, thereby evading the Dutch who fiercely protected their monopoly of nutmeg. These bold, cheeky sailors filled their vessel with the cargo of spices and sailed back to Europe.
As time passes I find amazing connections of the bead trade going back thousands of years. A Roman bead in a Japanese grave, beads from Mesopotamia in a 600 BC grave in Norway. Baltic amber in 4000 year old Egyptian pharaoh's tomb. Over the next few blogs I shall explore some of these facets.
]]>On Saturday Veronica gave a talk to the Museum of Indonesian Art. One of her very special necklaces sold (pictured).
The necklace is mainly translucent bicone beads that we call buddha beads because they are between 1000 and 2000 years old, strung on German silk with some 24 K gold beads.