Ceremonial textile (pua)
Not on view
This fine ceremonial textile, constructed from two similarly ikat patterned and dyed panel, is linked to the Kantu people of West Kalimantan, Borneo. The textile incorporates a bold and graphic reverse-style design which is expertly executed and relates to an important complementary work already in the Island S.E. Asian textile collection already within the collection of AAOA (refer to 2006.349). The designs in the center and in the paired, patterned side stripes are created by black, white and red warp ikat on the handspun yarns. These areas are flanked and separated by groups of single-color, narrow stripes (of differing widths) in red, black, yellow, tan and white.
The culture and spirituality of the Iban people is interwoven with the natural environment of Borneo, an island the Iban have inhabited for many generations. The genre of pua is the woven textile most readily associated with the Iban. The dyeing and preparation of textiles is highly ritualized in Iban society and the finished textiles–with their figurative motifs–are used to convey cultural and spiritual teachings. In this respect, both the process and the finished cloth are among the Iban’s most cherished cultural practices.
