Page 8 - Fifty-fifty July 2021

The people of Indonesia believed that the soul of a human can
only feel at home if the body is completed by decorations on the
skin. Therefore, the so-called Titi spiral markings were (Rajah)
tattooed on hands, forearms and lower legs at a certain age. In
addition, men often received a sinuous chest shield reaching as
far up as the cheeks. The tattoo equipment was a wooden
sledge and a grip made from deer horn with a brass needle. A
petroleum grime [soot] containing colour was spread on the
brass needle and the pattern, which was first drawn on the
particular body part, was tattooed into the skin. The skin art The
survived the colonization of Indonesia by the Europeans after
their discovery of the sea route to India in 1498.
Tattoo
Only on a few islands is the tradition of body art still maintained.
Especially the islands of Borneo [Kalimantan], Mentawai, Nias,
Lesser Sunda (Nusa Tenggara), Sulawesi, Flores, Sumba, Roti,
Papua and Bali have kept up the tradition of the Rajah (tattoo) Culture
as an independent and world-wide recognized art form.
in
Indonesia provides one of the best examples of traditional
tattoos in history and of their journey through Asian countries.
The Indonesian islands that have the most eminent ancient
historical and traditional tattoos are from the Dayak tribe and the Indonesia
Mentawai tribe.

The Dayak
The Dayak tribes live inside the inland of Kalimantan. For the
Dayak tribe, a tattoo is a sacred thing. Tattoo for them is a mark to
their god to identify them so they can go to heaven. Each tattoo
design has a meaning based on the person’s experience and their
life journey. Not every Dayak person has a tattoo, and each
person may not have the same tattoo designs.

Tattoo in the Dayak language is ‘tutang’. Every motif has a
different meaning. The placement can’t be put on carelessly
either. In their belief, the black coloured tattoo will turn into gold
and be considered as the path to eternity after they have died. The
tattoo design in this tribe also has meaning to protect them from
bad spirits, or as a mark that they pass the test of ‘kinyah’, the
traditional martial arts of the Dayak. To women, the tattoo is a
mark that they ready to marry.

The traditional tattoo motifs usually come from animals and plants.
The nobleman of the tribe usually has the hornbill bird to represent
the heaven, spiral motif of frogs, rosette of Borneo flower, and tree
branches and others. The characteristic of Dayak tattoo design is
blocking.

The Mentawai
Tattoo on Mentawai tribe language is ‘Titi’. The tattoo artist called
‘Sipatiti’. To the Mentawai tribe, the tattoo is a symbol of natural
balance and beauty. Tattoo to them is also their expression of art.
The motif on Mentawai tribe is adjusted depending on the social
status or the person’s profession. The characteristic of Mentawai
tattoo design is the line. Can you give an illustration of the line?
Both Mentawai and Dayak tribes usually have rituals before the
tattoo session.

From:
https://www.flickr.com/groups/indonesiantattootribes/discuss/72157610466784434/
https://capbagongtatu.com/the-journey-and-history-of-traditional-tattoo-in-indonesia/

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