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Lot 712
Handle and scabbard of a ceremonial kris "gayang"
Estimated Value:
3.000 € - 5.000 €
Result:
incl. Premium and VAT
Description:
Sulawesi South, Toraja, 18th/19th cent.L. 45,5 cm/ H. 20 cm
Wood, non-ferrous metal. Rare mount of a ceremonial kris gayang, which was of great importance for burial ceremonies among the Toraja on Sulawesi. The handle (hulu) is made of cast non-ferrous metal and depicts a person sitting in a slightly inclined position on a stylized pedestal. The high status can be recognized by the elaborate chest ornament and the high crown of hair. The blade is not present; it was usually of secondary importance in this context. The handle is cast in a lost form and, like the scabbard, can be considered Toraja work. It is oversized, very heavy or thick-walled and was clearly not intended for carrying or use. Inside there is a wooden core, probably attached with dammar resin, to hold the blade in place. The handle base with the eight-sided base element (selut) goes back to the lotus throne of Hindu deities. Typical of the Toraja adaptation is the buffalo head at the base, where a lotus blossom or abstracted yoni was originally used as a cosmic symbol of origin. The wooden scabbard (sarung) is covered with embossed sheet metal made of a gold-containing (?) alloy. The mouthpiece is widened and suggests a boat shape. When the kris or gayang is inserted into the scabbard, it creates the constellation of a figure in a ship or boat. This refers to the journey of the soul of the deceased. The mouthpiece of the scabbard shows a stylized depiction of two buffaloes and a human figure. At Toraja funerals, it was (and still is) customary to document the wealth of the deceased through multiple buffalo sacrifices as part of the funeral ceremonies. This is indicated by the scene. The sheet metal of the blade sheath is partially decorated with stylized floral motifs in hallmarking, which originally symbolized an idealized landscape.
Collected from an old German private collection since the 1950s
The gayang object type is the Toraja adaptation of East Javanese state crises from the 14th century. During this period, the East Javanese empire of Majapahit ruled over large parts of the Indonesian archipelago. The Javanese central government handed over state crises to the princes of the vassal states of Makassar and Gowa in South Sulawesi, symbolizing their legitimation by Java. They indicate divine or god-like status, as the owners saw themselves as descendants of Hindu-Buddhist deities and thus legitimized their rule. The Toraja incorporated these prestigious objects into their multi-layered burial cults. They are added to the dead or coffins (tongkonan) during the secondary burial and the cyclical ancestral festivals and indicate status and an important line of ancestors. The iconography and decoration of the handle figure go back to Hindu representations of princes and gods from the 13th and 14th centuries. The serene posture (lalita-sana) and the hand position with the gesture of earth invocation originally depict a prince as an avatar of Vishnu invoking his deified ancestors - Minor wear, part. minim. rep.
