1970 Antique Iban Ceremonial Ikat - Blue Dots

Antique Iban Ceremonial Ikat Pua Kumbu with a fantastic presence

Among the Iban, textiles are treasured as they are more than just objects made of fibre.

In some cultures, such as the Iban, textiles have played a major, if not central role, in all the ceremonies surrounding the important events in life. Power structures among women are based on dyeing and weaving skills. Perhaps the most important materials owned by families were textiles.

Ikat textiles are among the hardest to make, as the tie-dye is done on the unwoven threads before they are woven into cloth. So with a design in the weaver's imagination, the thread is dyed in sections as per the pattern that is required to be created. This takes immense precision and calculation. So when we note that these textiles were made decades ago in the rainforests of Borneo - Kalimantan, Sabah & Sarawak, there is a sense of awe for the creators.

Further, textiles themselves were believed to have the power to connect to the spirit world. The motifs, the dyes and the complexity of the weaving - all factors that were a direct result of the weaver's skill and experience - contributed to the power held by a textile.

Only textiles with certain features could be used during the most important community ceremonies and the weavers of these therefore enjoyed an elevated status of prestige.

So to study an Iban textile, requires us to focus on patterns, motifs, complexity and lastly and equally importantly - the dyes. The process of dyeing enjoys a far greater role in the value chain of production of Iban textiles than it does in any other group of textiles.

74.5 in (189.23 cm)Width: 34 in (86.36 cm)

MY NOTES ON THIS TEXTILE:

• Note the little blue 'rice grains' that act as filler elements inside the thick black borders of each hexagon. Rendering these tiny vertical lines with precision is the work pf a masterweaver
• The dancing ladies in the top border are wonderful visually - especially with the black background around them - also a remarkable achievement in ikat.
• Is the large field motif within the lattice (bottom row) a stylised version of the Bua Nising demon pattern?
• The vertical edge borders have detailed motifs woven in and include horizontal lines usually seen in the main field.
• The color is a plum red - do look at the video at the end to see the actual colors in daylight.
• The textile itself is lightweight
• The cloth has softened with age and feels pliable.

 CLICK TO SEE THE COMPLETE COLLECTION OF IKAT PUA KUMBU

This item has spent a lifetime being used for the purpose of its creation with the original artist/user. Signs of this life lived heartily may be present on the piece in the form of stains, thread loss, loose threads, holes, tears, color run and other imperfections. Therefore the condition must be assumed to be “not” perfect. More photos of such imperfections will be provided on request.

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