430

Batak Magic Book

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 10,000.00 USD
Batak Magic Book
All knowing, in magic, medicine, and religion, the Datu (priest) of a Batak Village is the most influential of a community. These medicine books (pustaha) are part of the Datu's (and other healers) traditional paraphernalia. Long strips of bast from the alim tree are smoothed, prepared with rice flour paste and folded concertina fashion and secured between decorated wooden or bone panels. The pages contain drawings, hand written magic formulas, oracles, recipes for medicines and instructions for performing rituals and the production of various magic cures used by the Datu. This medicine book has hand carved Water Buffalo bone panels. The top panel features a hand carved lizard depicting the guardian god "Boraspati". The strip of bast is is approx. 1" wide and 16" long, folded into the 1.25" X 2.25" bone panels. (excellant condition) The Batak homeland is the island of Sumatra at the western end of the modern Republic of Indonesia. It's the fifth largest island in the world and many other tribes live there. Batak peoples live in the remote areas of the mountainous highlands and the eastern and western coastal regions. One thousand meters above sea level, the highlands steep valleys and thick forests made the Batak region inaccessible and impenetrable during the period of scientific, missionary and colonial development. Long known to Europe, the Batak have only relatively recently come to the attention of the West. The Batak consist of six ethenic groups, diverse in dialect and historical experience. Although Islam and Christianity have been strong influences, many of the Batak population still follow religious ideas and practices of their ancestors. The Batak are one of the few cannibalistic peoples know to have a sophistacated calendar, written language, and with their gold trade, also a system of numbers. The carvers of the Batak peoples are considered some of the best primitive carvers in the world. The quality of their workmanship and the beauty of their peices bear witness to the talent of the people that produce them.