Mihing Festivities depicted on a rattan mat with explanations of the Ngaju Dayak Plaitress in Marapit (upper Kapuas) Kalimantan - Ngaju Dayak iconography relational to oral epics.
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THE SARAWAK MUSEUM JOURNAL |
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Title :
Mihing Festivities depicted on a rattan mat with explanations of the Ngaju Dayak Plaitress in Marapit (upper Kapuas) Kalimantan - Ngaju Dayak iconography relational to oral epics. |
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Author :
Arnoud H. Klokke |
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Abstract:
Concepts and symbols of the Kaharingan religion of the Ngaju Dayak (Central Kalimantan) are found in the artistic expressions of local artisans on rattan-plaited mats and bamboo tubes. The picturescan only be fully understood if attentionis paidto the oral epics relating Ngaju Dayak mythology. The mat presented here (Plate I)was plaited in 1951 by Mirentje Bahoei in Marapit when she was in her forties. She was famous for her religiously inspired plaiting:at least two of her mats found their way to museums in Europe (Leiden, Basel). According to local villagers she only plaited the religious depictions when she had fallen into a trance. Famous plaitresseswere known to become prepared for their craft by being given magic potions, karohai hajawet (Mallinckrodt, 1924: 572). Her explanations (below in italics), verbatim noted down in 1951 by the author,were given while she was singing in a whispering voice (karungut). The language used consists of Ngaju Dayak, priest language (Bahasa Sangiang) and some Indonesian words. Considering the person she was, it does not come as a sutprise that some of het explanations deviate from what is known in the literature.
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| DOI: XXXX |
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How to cite:
Arnoud H. Klokke. (2006). Mihing Festivities depicted on a rattan mat with explanations of the Ngaju Dayak Plaitress in Marapit (upper Kapuas) Kalimantan - Ngaju Dayak iconography relational to oral epics. The Sarawak Museum Journal, LXII (83): 33-44 |
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References
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