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Batak Medicine Carrier

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:200.00 USD Estimated At:200.00 - 10,000.00 USD
Batak Medicine Carrier
All knowing, in magic, medicine, and religion, the Datu (priest) of a Batak Village is the most influential of a community. This rare and endangered potion carrier is part of the Datu's traditional paraphernalia. Medicinal herbs and potions with special powers are stored in these containers. The potion carrier is made from the full horn of an old water buffalo with two traditional squatting figures carved into the tip and adorned with a tuft of horse hair. The open end is sealed with a large wooden stopper caved from Kayu Laut (Sea Wood), a holy wood of the Batak people. The front ornate stopper features an ornately carved head of "Singa", a mythical lion. This piece, 27.5" long by 12" high and approx. 3.2" wide, is rare, unusual and in 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.