Socio-Cultural Religious Uses & Relationships

 Beads have been incorporated into Indonesian culture over the centuries. Sailors traded them for provisions while on their way to the fabled Spice Islands. These beads are thought to have originated in Indonesia, India, and Europe.

Exact age is difficult to discern although it is believed that some of the beads are much older than the items they adorn. The umbrellas and the baskets are handcrafted works of art from the Lampung and Bengkulu Provinces of South Sumatra, one of the largest islands in the Indonesian Archipelago.

They are made from hand-woven rattan, covered with cotton cloth and beaded through both the fabric and the basket a few beads at a time. The baskets are traditionally used in the presentation of gifts and dowry items. The most common gift – jewelry, clothing or food, is tucked into the basket and presented.

The gift is taken and the basket returned to the family that gave the gift. They are kept as heirlooms being passed down through the family. The basket can also be used as a purse or a picnic basket on special occasions.

The umbrella is an ancient symbol used to invite ancestral spirits to a right of passage. Rites of passage or “transition rights” are attended with the belief that there is a transitioning from one state of existence to another. These transitions are always regarded as dying and being born again. The persons submitting to these rights are accorded temporarily princely honors and are vulnerable as they change from one state of existence to another.

Other ceremonial items include stuffed pillows carrying symbols of fertility, joy and new beginnings among others, beaded wedding-bed veil tie-backs.

This art form has been resurrected in recent years and items are again being created in the traditional style.