Tattoo Pattern
| Object Number: | P211 |
|---|---|
| Current Location: | Collections Storage |
| Culture: | Kayan |
| Provenience: | Borneo Sarawak |
| Date Made: | ca. 1897 |
| Early Date: | 1887 |
| Late Date: | 1897 |
| Section: | Oceanian |
| Materials: | Wood |
| Length: | 11.3 cm |
| Width: | 6 cm |
| Thickness: | 1.8 cm |
| Credit Line: | Gift of Dr. William H. Furness 3rd., 1898 |
Description
Flat piece of wood carved to leave a pattern in high relief. The block is inked and pressed onto the skin as a guide for the tattooing. Pattern is identified by Furness as "kala asu" (scorpion dog), usually tattooed on a Kenyah or Kayan man's forearm or upper thigh. Similar to a block illustrated by Hose and Shelford as a "Kayan dog design." A single pattern, for a man's forearm or thigh. From a tatu-block in the Sarawak Museum.
Current & Past Exhibitions:
| The Dayaks: Peoples of the Borneo Rain Forest (Furness, Hiller, Harrison Borneo Collection) (25 Feb 1989 - 01 Jul 1990) | View Objects in Exhibition |
Bibliography:
| [Book] Furness, William H. 1902. The Home-Life of Borneo Head-Hunters: Its Festivals and Folk-lore.. Philadelphia. J. B. Lippincott & Co. Type Citation : Page/Fig./Plate: Illustration following p. 148, Nos. 9 and 15 | View Objects related to this Type Citation |
| [Article] Shelford, R., and Hose, Charles. 1906. "Materials for a Study of Tatu in Borneo". The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. Vol. XXXVI. pg. 1-48 Type Citation : Page/Fig./Plate: Plate VI, Fig. 6 | View Objects related to this Type Citation |
| [Book] McDougall, William, and Hose, Charles. 1912. The Pagan Tribes of Borneo.. London. Macmillan and Company. Type Citation : Page/Fig./Plate: Plate 136, Fig. 6 | View Objects related to this Type Citation |
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