Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
Museum and the Online Archive of California
Creation Place:
Bali
Creation Place:
Indonesia
Creation Place:
Nusa Penida?
Creation Place:
Singaraja?
Title:
Textile; kamben cepuk; dance costume. Indonesia
Materials:
handwoven
Materials:
weft ikat
Materials:
cotton
Materials:
fabric
Dimensions:
127.0 cm by 85.0 cm
Current Location:
Fowler Museum of Cultural History. University of California, Los Angeles.
Address:
Los Angeles, California 90095-1549
Object ID:
UCLA FMCH X70.107
Subject:
- handwoven weft ikat cotton fabric
Heading:
Content/Description
Notes:
REMARKS COMPILED IN 1987 BY ROY HAMILTON ON BASIS OF EXISTING RECORDS, EXAMINATION OF OBJECT, AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE: "Kamben cepuk" with handspun cotton thread and natural dyes. "Kamben" signifies an outerwear hip wrap cloth. "Kamben cepuk" are a particular style of weft ikat cloths, well known in Bali where they are put to a variety of ceremonial uses. They are best known as part of the costume of the witch Rangda, who symbolizes the evil forces in Balinese mythology and theater. They are also used as offerings in a ceremony for a newborn, to turn away dangerous powers from adolescents at the time of their tooth filing ceremony, and at purification ceremonies for the dead. They additionally serve as temple decorations and offerings to devine powers. This cloth was purchased by George Ellis in the Netherlands. The information which accompanied the cloth indicated Singaraja as the place of origin. "Kamben cepuk" are generally associated with manufacture on the offshore island of Nusa Penida, although they were also made in other parts of Bali. No matter where they were made, "kamben cepuk" were valued as sacred objects all over Bali. Thus it is possible that this cloth was purchased in Singaraja, which was once the major point of European contact, but originated elsewhere.
Collection Description:
METS ID:
ark:/13030/ft6j49p0j 8

Textile; kamben cepuk; dance costume. Indonesia