Ceremonial Cloth (geringsing wayang kebo)

Description

According to tradition, the Hindu god Indra established the village of Tenganan Pegeringsingan as an earthly representation of the cosmos. Ceremonial textiles created there are renowned throughout the island of Bali for their magical and protective powers because of the site’s cosmological significance. Men, women, boys, and girls wear these cloths as belts, shawls, or wrappers for public ceremonies and private rituals. In this composition, a repeating design appears between the three dominant star shapes that features a trio of figures: a squatting priest or hermit with turbanlike headgear at center, a reverent woman kneeling in front of him, and a woman seated behind him with a headwrap indicating she may be the priest’s wife.

Provenance

E.M. (Pete) Bakwin, Chicago, IL, by 2002 [E.M. Bakwin Collection of Indonesian Textiles inventory EMB-1010; incoming receipt RX23940, Jan. 22, 2003; copy in curatorial object file]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2002.

Ceremonial Cloth (geringsing wayang kebo)

20th century

Accession Number

180400

Medium

Cotton, warp and weft resist dyed (warp and weft ikat) plain weave, main warp fringe

Dimensions

240 × 56 cm (94 1/2 × 22 in.)

Classification

textile

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Gift of E. M. Bakwin Indonesian Textile Collection