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Lot 688
Medicine container "naga barsarang"
Estimated Value:
500 € - 800 €
Result:
incl. Premium and VAT
Description:
Indonesia, Sumatra North, Toba-Batak, 19th/early 20th cent.L. 31 cm
Brass. Magic horn made using the yellow cast technique, probably made by the Toba-Batak. It probably dates from the late 19th or early 20th century. The body is fluted and has the typical squatting ancestor figure as a finial at the tapered end of the container, which is based on the shape of real (buffalo) horns. Decorative bands with geometric ornamentation run around the body; the lid and body are connected by a chain, which also serves as a carrying chain. This is still a genuine “utility piece” that shows traces of several years of handling. The singa has legs, tending to be a more recent feature. The similarity of the “riders”, who kneel on the neck of the singa or gaja dompak, is clearly recognizable. Gaja dompak (“towering elephant”) is a synonym for the multi-layered being singa, which is not to be understood biologically, but expresses greatness and power. The foremost figure holds the central “horn” of the singa. Smaller metal horns became a popular souvenir for visitors to the Batak area and the upper class in Medan after 1880.
Collected from an old German private collection since the 1950s
