Belitung Shipwreck from early 9th century

If it wasn’t for the high price of sea cucumbers, considered a delicacy in China and Southeast Asia, one of the greatest shipwrecks of the Tang dynasty (which ruled China from 618-907 AD) would still have been undiscovered. In 1998, fishermen diving for sea cucumbers off the coast of Belitung, a small island east of Sumatra in Indonesia, discovered ceramic bowls in the soft sandy sea bed. Realising that these were of value, the fishermen sold the bowls and the location of the find. A German company then obtained the requisite permits to salvage the location and were lucky to find a ship laden with a cargo that was almost intact, albeit covered in coral and marine life. Over the next few months, the contents of the shipwreck were salvaged and put up for sale with the condition that the entire cargo would be sold as a whole rather than piece by piece. After some bargaining, a Singaporean foundation bought the cargo for US$ 32 million in 2005 and is now exhibited at the Asian Civilisations Museum.

$32 million might seem like a high price but the Belitung shipwreck was groundbreaking in two major ways - one, it provided proof of direct trade between China and the middle east as early as the 9CE and second, it brought to light the ingenious ship building technique of Arabian Dhows. Studies are still underway so the shipwreck might still have more mysteries to uncover. 

If you were to look at the exhibits today, you would hardly believe the state they were in when salvaged. Salt water can be very corrosive and being underwater for centuries, the cargo was a host for various marine-life. Immense conservation work had to be done in order to bring this cargo back to its pristine state. After salvaging the cargo, most of it was shipped to New Zealand and stored in a warehouse for conservation. The precious pieces were worked on by an unlikely crew of dentists - a profession in which steady hands are a prerequisite to dealing with delicate materials in confined spaces.

Fig 1: Marine life growing on ceramics

Fig 2: Coral encrusted ceramic jar

Carbon dating of some organic items on board (ship’s timber, shipment of star anise and a small piece of resin) and inferences made by scientists has dated the shipwreck to about 830AD, which would mean that she has been lying mostly undisturbed in the sea-bed for about 1200 years. 830s was the period of the two great empires- the Abbasid Caliphate in western Asia and the Tang dynasty in China. There are writings mentioning trade and diplomatic ties between these empires with their capitals in the cities of Baghdad and Xi’an (of the terracotta warrior fame) as early as 7CE but this shipwreck provided concrete proof of their connection. 

Ships from the middle east have been sailing the waters around Asia and it was evident from the construction of this ship that she was a traditional Arabian dhow. She was built of African wood and the planks were tied together with coconut fibres without the use of nails or screws. Similar technique of ship-building were used in the middle east until very recently. 

Fig 3: Replica of the Belitung Ship, originally 18x6 meters

After the findings from the Belitung shipwreck, Oman, which is strategically located on the western side of the Arabian sea and along the ancient maritime trade routes, embarked on an ambitious project to reconstruct a dhow named ‘Jewel of Muscat’. In 2008, the construction of this new dhow began and it was built to exactly the same specifications as the original dhow from the 9CE. To make things a little interesting, the builders decided to use the same tools that would have been used in the olden days, which meant no power tools or nails could be used in its construction. 

Oman has a long heritage of ship building so they were up for this challenge. Even today, you can visit workshops making wooden ships. A year back, I visited my parents in Muscat, the capital of Oman, we toured a ship building workshop in the city of Sur. A dhow was being constructed that would serve its life as a floating restaurant. I would recommend you to watch an excellent documentary by National Geographic called ‘Jewel of Muscat’ which documents its construction highlighting the challenges that would have been faced by the original ship builders in ancient times. The website dedicated to this ship is jewelofmuscat.tv. 

The Belitung dhow was returning home to the middle east from China and travelling along the popular maritime sailing routes. Scholars believe that she hit a reef and sank in the shallow waters off Belitung - only 2 nautical miles/ 3.7 km offshore in a relatively shallow depth of 17 meters/54 feet. Because of her proximity to the shore, it is believed that the crew were able to swim to safety since no human remains were found. The ship was a modest 18x6 meters but she was laden with jars upon jars of Chinese ceramics estimated to be about 25 metric tonnes. Luckily, the resting place of the ship was a soft-sandy sea bed which prevented the ceramics from damage and of the approximately 70,000 pieces in the cargo, about 60,000 pieces were salvaged.

Fig 4: Mass produced Changsha bowls

The majority of the cargo was cheap, mass produced ceramics called Changsha-ware, named after the kiln region where they were made.  Colours on the ceramics were browns and greens and some reds with floral and animal motifs painted on them. These colourful wares were the preference of the foreign markets since in those days, the Chinese preferred a monochrome palette of whites and pale greens/celadon- colors that mimicked precious jade which they believed to have supernatural powers of healing. Some pieces have Arabic words and Buddhist symbols like the swastika glazed on them. Out of all the thousands of bowls, there was only one that could date the cargo. It has an inscription mentioning ‘a summer’s day in 826’ and since this bowl was not a collectable item, its presumed that the ship sailed a few years after that date. 

Fig 5: Changsha bowl with Buddhist symbols like Swastika

There were a few precious good on board as well, found deep below deck. High quality and imperial grade ceramics along with a handful of exquisite metal objects made of bronze, gold and silver (figures 6-8). These items were highly valued even in the 9CE and from the workmanship, you can tell that these were probably made for very high ranking clients or used as diplomatic gifts. 

 Fig 6: Small dish with a pair of Mandarin ducks - a symbol of marital bliss

 Fig 7: Silver boxes for holding cosmetics or small items

Fig 8: Precious white-ware lidded jar

Many amazing discoveries have been made with this shipwreck but what astounds me most was the ingenuity of China to cater to the global markets. It mass-produced export items that were specific to the tastes of the foreign markets back in the 9th CE. To produce these quantities of ceramics, there had to have been an organised network of people working together, not just locally but also from far away places. It truly was a well-connected world even 1200 years ago.   

Introduction to traditional Chinese landscape paintings

ACM's Scholar's in Chinese culture gallery - courtesy ACM

After months of renovations at Singapore's Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM), two new galleries were unveiled last November- Tang Shipwreck and Scholars in Chinese Culture. Both these galleries contain treasures from China and I was inspired to write about one of the artefacts on display, a painting by Wang Yuanqi (1642-1715) from the early 18th century (figure 1). For this post, I thought of using this masterpiece to give a brief introduction to traditional Chinese landscape painting. I am assuming that you are familiar with the Western classical landscape paintings of this era where art is about realism - a near photographic representation of what you see (think masters like Rembrandt, Vermeer). Landscapes of China are very different from Western both in the medium used and their composition. 

But before I discuss the differences, we need to understand who the Chinese painters were. China has been under imperial rule for over 2200 years, roughly from 220 BCE till 1911 CE when the empire fell. During the days of the empire, people were needed to run the administration over a region that was as vast as Europe. For hundreds of years, imperial civil service exams were held in order to pick the best and the brightest men (women has no place in the administration). Young boys studied for years before they could take these demanding exams which tested proficiency in classical Confucius texts, literature, poetry and calligraphy. Men who succeeded in passing these exams held powerful posts and were the admired scholar-officials or the literati. 

These bureaucrats also indulged in pursuits that were considered the mark of a cultured man like having the ability to write calligraphy, play music and weiqi (a strategy game similar to chess), and also to paint. Luckily for them, the tools required for their everyday duties could also double up for painting. Writing supplies like the Chinese brush, black ink and paper (figure 3) were readily available in their work space and the lines and strokes they had perfected for years on calligraphy could also be used to compose landscapes. Until recently, most paintings were not made by professional ‘artists’ but by scholars.

Chinese landscape paintings are called ‘Shan Shui’ or mountain-water since these are the two basic natural elements depicted. The scenes shown on paintings were not of a real place, rather an imagined location where the forces of nature were in harmony with each other. This idea of harmony comes from Daoism which is an ancient philosophy/religious belief of China. It’s a complicated concept that is out of the scope of this post but I mention it because one of its ideals was ‘man’s quest to achieve harmony with nature’. Scholars tried to portray this imagery by dreaming up idealized and spiritually tranquil places.

Let’s look at the landscape paintings by a renowned scholar-artist Wang Yuanqi dated early 18th century. Figure 1 is in the ACM’s collection, however I was unable to get a good picture of it so have used 2 other paintings by the artist. Figure 3 and 4 are details of the same painting. All three are titled ‘Landscape after Hwang Gongwang’. I will use these paintings to highlight some aspects of Chinese landscape paintings. Interestingly, they are all painted vertically which is quite different from the horizontal format of Western landscapes.

Figure 1 - Landscape by Wang Yuanqi (ACM collection)

Figure 2: Landscape by Wang Yuanqi (courtesy Sotheby's)

These paintings show a tranquil landscape of mountains, boulders, trees and a few man-made structures harmoniously balanced. The colors are monochromes or with a very limited palette that are painted on rice paper. Each object is outlined with a sharp brush point and filled in with varying shades of greys. Black ink is the main medium used for paintings and tones of grey are achieved by adding the desired amount of water to the ink. The skill of the artist is really tested in making such compositions since rice paper is highly absorbent and therefore an unforgiving material. The paper demands precision in the pressure applied when making lines and strokes since a single mistake can cause blotting and ruin the paper. 

Thin sheets of paper or silk (another material used for paintings) are then mounted onto a hanging scroll to provide a thick backing. Scrolls lend themselves perfectly to appreciating works of art since paintings are generally not meant to be viewed continuously but rather from time to time, and scrolls can be easily be rolled up for storage. Every time the scroll is unfurled, the viewer may discover new details, allowing them to fall in love with the painting all over again. 

Figure 3: Top half of painting by Wang Yuanqi showing inscriptions

Figure 4: Bottom half of painting by Wang Yuanqi

What immediately stands out in terms of the composition is the use of blank spaces in this finished work. This is unheard of in Western art where every inch of the canvas is covered with paint. Chinese artist intentionally leave parts of the paper untouched so as to visually balance the painting - the filled in parts are balanced with the blank parts. This also allows the viewer to use their imagination to fill in these space, but of course with a hint of suggestion. Take another look at figure 4, you don’t see water or sky, it is just empty. What do you think the blank space represents? The ‘C’ shaped void starting from the base of the mountain coming towards the viewer is most probably a water body - a lake or a river, which you can infer from the shoreline and the little bridge spanning a narrow stretch of water. What you don’t see are waves or a boat since these images would be too obvious a suggestion. Another element that is missing is the sky or clouds. It is not painted in but the viewer knows of its existence.

Chinese art has a long tradition of copying from the masters as it's a way of paying a compliment and showing respect. Originality was not a virtue that artist strived for, preferring to make imitations, albeit not exact copies, of masterpieces by following the conventions, methods and styles used centuries before. The paintings seen here are made in the style of a master artist named Huang Gongwang (1269-1354) from the thirteenth century who lived about four hundred years before these paintings were made. The artist has choose to use the old master’s style as inspiration for these scenes. We know this from inscriptions by the artist who is praising the skill of the master (figure 3). This is a very common practice for artists to pen down their thoughts oftentimes describing the painting.

In addition to the writings by the artist, Chinese paintings allow admirers and friends to put their thoughts either as poetry or prose alongside works of arts they appreciate or collect. On the scroll in figure 1, there are three additional pieces of paper pasted around the landscape. These colophons have been written by admirers or collectors of this painting and they are showering praises on the skills of the old master Huang Gongwang. Curiously, there is no mention of Wang Yuanqi, the painter of this painting but by associating their words with this painting, they are indirectly praising him as well. 

The final act of completing the painting is to ‘put your stamp’ on the piece of art and this is literally what Chinese artists do, they use personally hand-carved seals as their signature. In figure 5, you can see four red seals (the red is from cinnabar paste). Seals don’t necessarily have to contain the name of the artist but some can also be words or quotes that represent the artist’s mindset. 

I have introduced basic aspects of traditional Chinese landscapes without going into much detail. I hope you have gained a little insight into how to appreciate these and get lost in their beautiful make-belief world.

Medicine containers from Toba Batak of Sumatra

I am fascinated by the indigenous culture that existed in South East Asia before the coming of foreign traders, about 2000 years ago. Last year, I was lucky to guide some amazing artefacts at the  'Beginning of the Becoming' exhibition that had many rare and beautiful artefacts from the Batak peoples of Sumatra, Indonesia. The collection was from the Mandala foundation that has generously donated some items to our museum.

Here is an article I wrote for the 'Friends of the Museums' Passage magazine back in March 2015.

If you believed that destruction and illnesses are caused by unseen spirits surrounding you, how would you appease these forces?  To the Batak - the indigenous ethnic group living in the northern highlands of Sumatra- spirits could either bestow blessings or cause chaos. They would enlist the services of a learned man who was a healer, fortune teller and above all, a shaman. Such a man was the datu (from Austronesian) meaning 'someone powerful', an influential person in the community mainly owing to his abilities to communicate and manipulate spirits through rituals. 

In order to perform his ritualist duties, the datu personally crafted objects and fetishes. The primary purpose of these scared objects was their magical powers; their artistic appeal was incidental. However, we can’t help but appreciate them for their visual aesthetics adding another dimension to the skills of the datu. Let’s look at containers crafted by the datu to hold his cococtions. 

Figure 1: Guri-guri with wooden stopper shaped as a rider atop a ceramic container. Height 16 cm, 19 CE.

The most sacred containers called guri-guri was used to hold magical portions called pupuk. Guri-guri, meaning earthen ware, were often imported from far-off places like China, Vietnam or Thailand, highlighting the flourishing trade between these countries and Indonesia. Ceramic containers were originally meant to hold oils and ointments from their country of origin but when they reached island Southeast Asia, they were highly valued for their beauty and durability. Perhaps this was the reason why the datu repurposed ceramics, deeming them precious enough to hold his most powerful concoctions.

Figure 2: Guri-guri with wooden rider sporting an impressive headdress. Height 12 cm, 19 CE

The datu put his personal touch on containers by carving wooden stoppers, seen here (figure 1, figure 2) shaped as riders. The equestrian rider symbolizes status and nobility since only the elite could afford horses, but one myth suggests that the rider represents the captive spirit whose essence is trapped inside. The recipe for making pupuk explains this. 

As outlined by J. Winkler in 1907, the ingredients for pupuk were objects which embodied suffering, destruction, hate and anger - rotten heart shaped leaves, uncooked rice from an unfortunate person such as widow, deaf or mute, charcoal, soil from place where animals had fought, itchy part of sugar palm were all roasted and crushed together. Occasionally, another ingredient was added and this was probably what instilled fear in outsiders giving Batak their fierce reputation - body parts of a captive slave who was allegedly under the control of the datu. This was said to ensure that the slave’s soul would perform actions in the spirit world which were prescribed by the datu. 

Figure 3: Guardian fetish with large chest cavity to hold pupuk. Height 78cm, late 19 CE.

Pupuk was the substance that gave objects their magical powers. To animate fetishes, it was usually inserted into the chest cavity, as seen here in a rather menacing guardian figure (Figure 3). The cavity was sealed to capture the spirit inside and to seek its protection, the figure was ritually fed foods and beverages like rice, wine, chicken blood and betel nut.

During the last century, many Batak have converted to Christianity and Islam diminishing the influcence of the datu. Nowadays, few datus practice old rituals and most of their proprietary knowledge which was passed down orally is lost. What has survived are the paraphernalia and sacred objects which are highly sort after and treated as objets d’art. 

Batak Ancestors – the living Gods

ACM has a fascinating exhibition showcasing Batak tribal art with an intriguing title ‘Beginning of the Becoming’ and it comes from one of the names of the supreme God of the Batak - Mula Jadi ni bolon. Batak is a collective word for the indigenous people who live in Northern Sumatra, Indonesia. There are six diverse groups that make up the Batak today. 

Lake Toba in Northern Sumatra

A scenic crater lake called Lake Toba, is believed by many (but not all) Batak to be the birthplace of their people and therefore considered sacred. For centuries, they had successfully protected their lands from outsiders, guarding the passes to the villages and also exaggerating stories of head-hunting and cannibalism. No outsider has witnessed these rituals (…or lived to tell about them) so we have no way of knowing if the wild rumours were true. It was not until the 18^th CE that accounts of the Batak came from Dutch merchants and Christian missionaries.

Since the early 20^th CE, many Batak have been converting to either Christianity or Islam, with mass conversion around WWII in the 1940's. Due to this, a lot of the beliefs and the traditional way of life is now lost and the current generation doesn’t associate with many artifacts in this exhibition. Most of the information we know is based on accounts from western anthropologists or missionaries.

In this post, I will write about their old religion from the pre-colonial times, focusing only on ancestor worship. Batak believe in three realms or worlds – upper world which is inhabited by the gods and ancestors, the lower world where bad spirits live and sandwiched between these is the middle world were humans reside alongside spirits. So basically, spirits were all around with the ability to bestow blessings or create havoc to the living.

Bataks were ancestor worshippers with many rituals surrounding this belief. Fetishes* of ancestors were carved and rituals were performed in order to receive their blessings and coorporation. Ancestor were very important to the Batak because they were believed to be intermediary to the deities and any calamities- like earthquake, diseases, famine- were believed to be due to unhappy ancestors. As mentioned, the ancestors resided in the upper world with the Gods and only took up temporary residence into fetishes during rituals where they were fed and anointed with offerings. One of the important rituals in which ancestors participated was a fertility ritual that would be held by a childless couple or a couple wishing to bear a son.

Fig 1: Debata idup (ancestor figures). Toba Batak, 19 CE. ACM collection

In fig 1, we see a pair of ancestors– one male, one female- all dressed in their finery. They are called living gods or debata idup (like many words in the Batak language, the word debata comes from Sanskrit ‘devata’ meaning divinity or demigod). They represent either the founding couple or important couple of a clan or village. Not everyone who passed away became an ancestor. Since there was a hierarchy in the spirit world, it is only people who were important and has a good status in society that made it to the upper world after death...and proper funeral rights were absolutely essential.

Because ancestors were worshiped, they would have been placed in an altar in the oldest clan house, just below the roof since this is the most sacred spot in a house and they would be clothed as a sign of respect. These ancestors have been wrapped in many layers of fabric and one even has a few white beads sewn on it.

To appreciate the stylistic features of these fetishes, we have to see them undressed. Luckily for us, most of the fabric covering them has been lost, probably disintegrated due to its fragile nature.

Fig 2: Debata idup/ Ancestor figures. Toba Batak, 19 CE. Mandala foundation. 

Fig 3: Debata idup/ Ancestor figures. Toba Batak, Late 19 CE. Mandala foundation. 

Here we have some ancestor figures with their hands in the classic posture – the arms are on the side of the body and the hands by the navel, often in a diamond shape (fig 3). Their legs are together and bent at the knees. The male figures have a protrusion on their heads in order to secure a turban. 

In most Batak fetishes, the feet are rarely fashioned and often are just stumps (fig 2), probably because their torso and feet were mostly covered with fabric. The ancestors in fig 3 look more realistic and have toes, which is very rare, and the stomps at the bottom were probably used to peg them into a wooden altar. 

These fetishes are all made of wood but over time, the color has changed to a beautiful, black shining patina. This is due to exposure to cooking smoke inside the house (Batak traditional houses have poor ventilation and have a cooking pot going almost the entire day) and from being regularly handled during rituals. 

Fig 4: Debata idup/Ancestor figures. Toba or pakpak-dairi. 19 CE. ACM collection

Fig 4 shows ancestors that are placed together onto a stump which is covered with palm fiber tied in a spiral pattern, notice the mohawk on the male's head. 

Ancestor figures were once considered heirlooms to be passed down from one generation to the next, but sadly many fetishes were either burned during conversion to Christianity or Islam; or many were sold to collectors’ decades ago.

*Fetish = inanimate object that is worshipped for its magical powers or because it is inhabited by a spirit

Indian patola fit for SEA royalty

ACM has a finely woven, silk shoulder cloth that was painstakingly made in Gujarat, West India about 200 years ago probably for the Southeast Asian (SEA) market. Because of the fragile nature of the fabric, it is dimly lit, giving it a beautiful sheen. This cloth is called patolu (singular and plural is patola). Although this technique originated in India, it is now popularly known the world over by a Malay word - double ikat (meaning to 'tie or bind'). Patola was sort after in SEA where it was mostly worn by the elite and sometimes restricted to the royality, for example, in the courts of Southeast Sumatra, Indonesia. This was one of the textiles that I included in my tour on Indian trade textiles called ‘Dyes that bind’.

Patolu shoulder cloth, Gurajat. 19^th CE. ACM, Singapore

Even today, Patola or double ikat is highly sort after with only 3 countries producing these precious cloths - India, Indonesia and Japan. The skill and patience required to make patola is enormous and can be appreciated once you hear about the labourious process involved.

Step one is the dyeing of the threads and this is where the ikat technique gets its name. Both threads that run horizontally called weft and vertically called warp have to be tied into bundles by a thread to form a desired pattern. These bundles are then dipped into dye and after they dry, the thread tying them together is removed. This results in the dye adhering only to the portion that is not covered by this thread. This process has to be repeated as many times as the colors on the cloth, starting from light to dark colors.

Tying threads to form a pattern on bundles of threads

Step two is the actual weaving of the cloth. The complete pattern becomes apparent only when the weft and warp threads come together and results in a pixilated look around the edges of the pattern. It can take weeks or months to make a patolu and because of this, it’s very expensive and therefore only the elite could afford them.

Patola weaving

A shoulder cloth is a rectangular cloth that is used to cover the head or shoulders. A closer look at the pattern on the one from ACM shows maroon flowers on a background of red. This pattern is one of the most popular patterns in Indonesia and is called the flower basket or eight-rayed flower; one central flower and 8 smaller flowers radiating from it. One suggestion for its popularity is believed to be its close similarity to the Buddhist dharma wheel which symbolizes the Buddhist eight-fold path. 

Closeup of Flower basket pattern

Buddhist dharma wheel with 8 spokes flanked by deers

There were many imitations of this pattern that were made locally in SEA, mainly reproduced by women because here weaving is a woman's job. But it was the original patola from India that were paramount in forging alliances and getting concessions on trade, as the European traders soon realized in the 17th CE.

Patola were not just heirlooms but assumed an important role in local traditions, even magical powers were attributed to them. Balinese Hindus believe patola provide protection against evil spirits and are displayed prominently in religious ceremonies and are often used as altar cloth. It is also believed that if a reproduction of a magical cloth like Patola is made, the copy will retain some of the magical attributes of the original.

Unfortunately, the art of making patola is dying and very few people are now producing them. After centuries of being highly sort after, it seems the days of the patola are now numbered.  

Dayak carved human skull

Dayak carved skull, Sarawak, Malaysia from 1900s. H 16cm, dia 17.5cm

I love guiding this human skull; mainly because it represents an important part of the belief system in Southeast Asia (SEA) and its very rare to have human remains in a museum. It's about 100 years old and is believed to be from the Kayan Dayak community hailing from Sarawak, the Malaysian part of the island of Borneo. Headhunting is the ritual act of taking a human head and had been prevalant in most of SEA communities for a few thousand years before the Europeans arrived here and banned it. It is a very complex subject and I am not going to get into it in depth or state any opinions on the ethical aspects surrounding it, but will present a very simplified view.

Dayak is the collective word given to the indigenous people of Borneo and it simply means inland or upriver. As the name suggests, most Dayak communities live along rivers and depend on it as well as the surrounding forest for their livelihood, so they form alliances with other groups living along the same river. Different communities have different beliefs around headhunting and perform different rituals so I am writing in very general terms. Dayak belief system was a mixture of ancestor worship and animism (from Latin animus meaning soul or life), which is the worship of spirits attributed to natural phenomenon and also inanimate objects. For example; thunder, lightening, earth, trees are said to have spirits. There are both good spirits and evil spirits but they have to be in harmony for the cosmos to be in balance. 

If there is an illness, disease or crop failure, the Dayaks believe that the cosmic balance is disrupted and evil spirits need to be appeased through rituals that require human sacrifice, mainly procuring heads of enemies. Why the human head? Some Dayaks believe that it contains the human soul (a very powerful spirit) and because it contains the face, it is a symbol of a human. The decision to procure a head was a serious one and the entire community made the decision together. Once the decision was made, a headhunting raid was organized and only men participated in it. It is also not to be confused with an act of war and the enemy victim was not a specific target but could be anyone. Once the victim was decapitated, the body was left behind (headhunting was not related to cannibalism) and the head was taken back to the village where it was treated with great respect. When the men returned from a successful raid, the women would welcome them home with songs and receive the victim’s head in a very special cloth called Pua Kumbu which is woven using the Ikat technique. This would imbue the cloth with magical powers of healing. After the raid, the men would get tattoos marking their participation, usually on their shoulders and fingers. 

Tattos showing he is a skilled headhunter, late 19th CE

Skill headhunter with 2 skulls and his sword around his waist

The head was usually smoked and kept in a very prominent place in a longhouse, which is a communal village house. It would be offered food and drink like eggs, rice, rice wine and these would be placed in a basket under the head. The reason for the offerings and ceremony was to entice the spirit contained in the head to become a friend of the community and work in their favour, and also to ward off the evil spirits, thus bringing prosperity to the community. Skulls are not normally carved so the one in ACM is very rare. Unfortunately, we don’t know why it was carved.

Closeup of the skull showing intricate patterns

Headhunting is deeply rooted in the SEA ritual life and a person who has taken heads gained stature in the community. Also, in some warrior communities, it was a 'coming of age' for a boy. A boy had to prove that he was a man and could only marry if he had taken at least one head. Headhunting has been banned for over 100 years in Borneo, however it is so deeply entrenched in the lives and folklore of the Dayaks that mock raids and rituals are still practiced; but luckily for tourists, a coconut is used to symbolize a head. There have been some rumours in the 20^th century about headhunting incidents especially during world war II and also some cases reported in the Indonesian papers as recently as 2001. 

Qur'an Ghubari scroll

Qur'an scroll fromTurkey, 15 CE. ACM, Singapore

Close up of the Qur'an scroll, 14 x 112 cm

If there was a fire in the museum, which artifact would I save? Tough question since there are so many beautiful artifacts in the museum but hands down, it would have to be a 500 year old Qur’an scroll written in ghubar script. The scroll measures 112cm x 14 cm and amazingly, it contains the entire contents of the holy book of the Muslims, the Qur’an.

The holy Qur’an contains God’s revelations to Prophet Muhammad in the 7^th CE and literally means recitation. It comprises of more than 77 thousand words in Arabic and they are all contained here, in a space measuring just over 1 meter. What you can see from far is a popular Shi’ite invocation but on closer inspection (click on the pictures to enlarge them), you can see minuscule words entirely handwritten in an Arabic calligraphic script called ghubar, which in Arabic means dustlike. The letters are as tiny and delicate as dust, often measuring between 1.3 and 3mm, like an army of tiny ants on paper. The ghubar script was probably first developed to convey military messages via carrier pigeons or pigeon post - olden day courier service!

What I find absolutely fascinating is the skill of the calligrapher who has painstakingly written this scroll. I can’t imagine the number of hours spent practicing and planning it and since it contains the sacred words, there can be no mistakes. Traditional tools used by Arabic calligraphers are carbon-based black ink, a reed pen called qalam and paper. The qalam is hand-cut by the calligrapher at an ergonomic angle and is slit down the center to hold ink. The width of the reed pen used to write ghubari is so small, barely visible to the naked eye.

Qalam made of reed used by Arabic calligraphers

There is a story that I like to tell the visitors. A 15th CE calligrapher eager to impress the ruler Timur (also known as Tamerlane) presented him with a miniature ghubari Qur'an that was so tiny that it could fit under a signet ring. You would think that the great ruler would be impressed, but it was not so. The calligrapher then made a Qur'an so large that it needed to be carried in a cart and for this, he was handsomely rewarded.

The ghubari script is too small to be read so the purpose of the scroll is as a talisman, since the words of God are believed to have protective powers. Ghubari miniature Qur’an were mainly commissioned for their portability and some were put into cases that were worn either around the neck or around the arm. Out of respect for the sacred words, they would have to be worn above the waist.

Miniature Qur'an from Persia or Anatolia, 14 CE (7 x 4.9 cm). ACM, Singapore

After looking at these Qur'ans, you realize why Arabic calligraphy is considered the highest art form in the Islamic world.