Material: Bone, wood
Style: Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 23 cm
Order Number: MHSABBP3

Betel chewing was widespread in Timor.

The basic ingredients are betel leaf, areca nut and lime powder. Gambir and tobacco may be added  to make it more fragrant.

The containers and implements included boxes of various shapes and sizes to store the betel nuts,  betel leaf holders for the already prepared betel quid, lime pots, hinged cutters , similar to scissors, to cut the hard areca nut, knives to cut the softer nuts, pounders to crush the nut, salve boxes to hold beeswax for the lips, spittoons, tobacco pouches and trays on which they all were displayed.

The betel pounder was like a mortar and pestle. It came in various sizes and its purpose was to crush the areca nut into a soft substance for the elderly or those who had no teeth and could not chew the hard nut. The pounder was a long metal instrument with a handle and sharpened tip, which pressed down on the nut inside a tall hollow cylinder.

About 50-60 years.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Timor Betel Pounder appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bone
Style: Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia
Size: Height 18 cm, Width 29 cm
Order Number: MHST1

The Tanimbar Islands are located in the South Moluccas and comprise over 60 islands which are 135 miles long and 70 miles wide.

They depend on boats as their main transport.

Noble families create glorious stylised ancestor altars to deified and recent ancestors. The truncated, hourglass, inscribed body has wide outstretched arms in the shape of a curved boat.  The ears have hanging earrings. At the edges are curling finials of radiating hooks. These honour the founding ancestors and are adorned with jewelry.

The larger ones, more than a metre and a half in height, support the central beam of the house. This is the centre of the house where children sleep. The ancestors determine men’s hunting and women’s fertility. Family heirlooms also include skulls, bones and wooden effigies.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tanimbar Altar 1 (Tavu) appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bone
Style: Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia
Size: Height 25 cm, Width 25 cm
Order Number: MHST2

The Tanimbar Islands are located in the South Moluccas and comprise over 60 islands which are 135 miles long and 70 miles wide.

They depend on boats as their main transport.

Noble families create glorious stylised ancestor altars to deified and recent ancestors. The truncated, hourglass, inscribed body has wide outstretched arms in the shape of a curved boat.  The ears have hanging earrings. At the edges are curling finials of radiating hooks. These honour the founding ancestors and are adorned with jewelry.

The larger ones, more than a metre and a half in height, support the central beam of the house. This is the centre of the house where children sleep. The ancestors determine men’s hunting and women’s fertility. Family heirlooms also include skulls, bones and wooden effigies.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tanimbar Altar 2 (Tavu) appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bone, wood
Style: Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 12.5 cm; Diameter 2.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTLC1

Betel chewing was widespread in Timor.

The basic ingredients are betel leaf, areca nut and lime powder. Gambir and tobacco may be added  to make it more fragrant.

The containers and implements included boxes of various shapes and sizes to store the betel nuts,  betel leaf holders for the already prepared betel quid, lime pots, hinged cutters , similar to scissors, to cut the hard areca nut, knives to cut the softer nuts, pounders to crush the nut, salve boxes to hold beeswax for the lips, spittoons, tobacco pouches and trays on which they all were displayed.

About 20-30 years old.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Timor Lime Container 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.