Architectural Ornament

This architectural ornament in the form of the head of a singa, is from a dwelling or rice barn of the Toba Batak people of northern Sumatra in Indonesia. Toba Batak peoples conceive of the singa as a composite animal and supernatural guardian. Carved in relief and painted in red, black, and white the singa has three horns: those on the left and right side curve slightly inwards with flaring semi-circular tips. The central horn extends straight upwards from the center of the forehead and ends in an angular, roughly arrowhead-shaped form with points at the apex and to each side. A rectangular hole, likely originally used for a peg or tenon that secured the ornament to the façade, is present on the forehead and extends completely through the piece at a downward sloping angle. The ears, brow ridge, and nose are rendered as a single fluid element whose form echoes the configuration of the horns above it. The eyes appear as lozenge-shaped forms in low relief and the mouth, its corners curving upwards in an expression resembling a smile, is shown at the base of the piece at the end of a short, flattened snout.