Material: Silver
Style: West  or Central Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 7 cm, Length 9 cm
Order Number: MHSATB1

Timor is best known for its silver bracelets and other jewelry. The Timorese have been using metal for a least 2,000 years but silver arrived late and rapidly replaced gold. Funnily enough silver is not native to Timor. The Europeans brought a large number of silver coins, starting with Spanish pieces of eight in the 16th century. Silver Dutch and Portuguese coins were melted down and made into jewelry.

When this bracelet is shaken it makes a sound.

There is a similar one in the Collection of the Barbier-Mueller Museum of Geneva shown in Power and Gold, Jewelry from Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, Prestel-Verlag, 1985, page 209, where it is described as a silver bell anklet worn by men in ritual dances, called nitbano in Atoni.

There is also a similar one in Gold Jewellery from Indonesia, Continuity and Evolution, Bruce Carpenter, Editions Didier Millet 2011, page 260, where it is described as a bracelet with seven bells, Tetum, West Timor, and that this bracelet was not worn on the wrist but held in the hand by dancers and used as a musical instrument by the Tetum, who live in the Belu region.

19th century or early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Bracelet 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: West  Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 5 cm, Length 7 cm
Order Number: MHSATB2

Timor is best known for its silver bracelets and other jewelry. The Timorese have been using metal for a least 2,000 years but silver arrived late and rapidly replaced gold. Funnily enough silver is not native to Timor. The Europeans brought a large number of silver coins, starting with Spanish pieces of eight in the 16th century. Silver Dutch and Portuguese coins were melted down and made into jewelry.

Meo warrior bracelet with radiating spikes (niti maskuna) Atoni people, West Timor.

There is a similar one in Gold Jewellery from Indonesia, Continuity and Evolution, Bruce Carpenter, Editions Didier Millet 2011, page 258.

19th century or early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Bracelet 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: West  or Central Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 5 cm, Width 5.5cm, Diameter 0.25 cm
Order Number: MHSATB3

Timor is best known for its silver bracelets and other jewelry. The Timorese have been using metal for a least 2,000 years but silver arrived late and rapidly replaced gold. Funnily enough silver is not native to Timor. The Europeans brought a large number of silver coins, starting with Spanish pieces of eight in the 16th century. Silver Dutch and Portuguese coins were melted down and made into jewelry.

This bracelet is small and was probably a child’s.

19th century or early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Bracelet 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: West  or Central Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 5 cm, Width 6 cm, Depth 0.5 cm
Order Number: MHSATB4

Timor is best known for its silver bracelets and other jewelry. The Timorese have been using metal for a least 2,000 years but silver arrived late and rapidly replaced gold. Funnily enough silver is not native to Timor. The Europeans brought a large number of silver coins, starting with Spanish pieces of eight in the 16th century. Silver Dutch and Portuguese coins were melted down and made into jewelry.

When this bracelet is shaken it makes a sound.

There is a similar one in the Collection of the Barbier-Mueller Museum of Geneva shown in Power and Gold, Jewelry from Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, Prestel-Verlag, 1985, page 209, where it is described as a silver bell anklet worn by men in ritual dances, called nitbano in Atoni.

There is also a similar one in Gold Jewellery from Indonesia, Continuity and Evolution, Bruce Carpenter, Editions Didier Millet 2011, page 260, where it is described as a bracelet with seven bells, Tetum, West Timor, and that this bracelet was not worn on the wrist but held in the hand by dancers and used as a musical instrument by the Tetum, who live in the Belu region.

19th century or early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Bracelet 4 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: West  Timor, Indonesia
Size: Height 6 cm, Length 7 cm, Diameter 1 cm
Order Number: MHSATB5

Timor is best known for its silver bracelets and other jewelry. The Timorese have been using metal for a least 2,000 years but silver arrived late and rapidly replaced gold. Funnily enough silver is not native to Timor. The Europeans brought a large number of silver coins, starting with Spanish pieces of eight in the 16th century. Silver Dutch and Portuguese coins were melted down and made into jewelry.

Meo warrior bracelet with radiating spikes (niti maskuna) Atoni people, West Timor.

There is a similar one in Gold Jewellery from Indonesia, Continuity and Evolution, Bruce Carpenter, Editions Didier Millet 2011, page 258.

19th century or early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Bracelet 5 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Leather
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 30 cm, Width 22 cm, Depth 22
Order Number: MHSTM7

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again.

There is an example of a wooden one in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Timor Mask 7 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, paint, leather, bells
Style: Bali, Indonesia
Size:  Height of mask 32 cm (not including beard), Width 68  cm (ear to ear), Depth 27 cm
Order Number: MHSBKM1

The jaw opens.

“Sacred Barong Ket masks get special treatment. Only brahmana carvers are allowed to carve them and the work takes place in the temple. Men sleep in the temple at night guarding it and women present daily offerings during the whole process. The mask is the most important part of the Barong and it is carved and painted in a special raised pavilion. Once the mask is carved by the brahmana woodcarver, commoners from the sudra caste polish the surface with sandpaper.

The brahmana carver paints the first brush stroke and hands over to specially trained craftsmen, who use traditional paints. The Barong may have up to 150 coats of paint. It is gilded in parts and highly polished. The eyes are large and bulbous, ringed in red, black, yellow and white, the colours of the gods Brahma, Wisnu, Mahadewa and Iswara. The Barong’s penetrating gaze portrays mixed expressions of fury and fun.

The Barong’s beard is powerful, its black hair donated by a pre-pubescent girl. It can bring people out of trance, purify and cure. His inner mouth, lips and eyes are inscribed with magical signs and protective charms are attached to the back of his neck. A protrusion at the top of his head indicates Siwa’s thunderbolt.

As the mask and body are joined three ceremonies take place in the temple to bring the Barong to life. A further ceremony takes place in the cemetery around midnight. Only priests, the mask maker, senior craftsmen and principal headmen are allowed to attend the secret rituals. At about 2 am a flaming ball enters the Barong and the sky turns a luminescent purple. The ceremony is finished.

Angela Hobart in Healing Performances of Bali (2003) summarises the paradoxical nature of the Barong,

While male, he has female features, as evidenced by his beard made from the hair of a pre-menstruating girl. Created by humans, he is a vehicle of the supreme god—especially Siwa.”

From our book Secrets of Bali, Fresh Light on the Morning of the World

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

The post Balinese Barong Ket Mask 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, paint, hair, leather, bells
Style: Bali, Indonesia
Size:  Height of mask 38 cm, Width 70  cm, Depth 20 cm; Height of beard 38 cm
Order Number: MB39B

This is the highest quality of mask, using the best materials and painting numerous times – temple quality. The jaw opens.

“Sacred Barong Ket masks get special treatment. Only brahmana carvers are allowed to carve them and the work takes place in the temple. Men sleep in the temple at night guarding it and women present daily offerings during the whole process. The mask is the most important part of the Barong and it is carved and painted in a special raised pavilion. Once the mask is carved by the brahmana woodcarver, commoners from the sudra caste polish the surface with sandpaper.

The brahmana carver paints the first brush stroke and hands over to specially trained craftsmen, who use traditional paints. The Barong may have up to 150 coats of paint. It is gilded in parts and highly polished. The eyes are large and bulbous, ringed in red, black, yellow and white, the colours of the gods Brahma, Wisnu, Mahadewa and Iswara. The Barong’s penetrating gaze portrays mixed expressions of fury and fun.

The Barong’s beard is powerful, its black hair donated by a pre-pubescent girl. It can bring people out of trance, purify and cure. His inner mouth, lips and eyes are inscribed with magical signs and protective charms are attached to the back of his neck. A protrusion at the top of his head indicates Siwa’s thunderbolt.

As the mask and body are joined three ceremonies take place in the temple to bring the Barong to life. A further ceremony takes place in the cemetery around midnight. Only priests, the mask maker, senior craftsmen and principal headmen are allowed to attend the secret rituals. At about 2 am a flaming ball enters the Barong and the sky turns a luminescent purple. The ceremony is finished.

Angela Hobart in Healing Performances of Bali (2003) summarises the paradoxical nature of the Barong,

While male, he has female features, as evidenced by his beard made from the hair of a pre-menstruating girl. Created by humans, he is a vehicle of the supreme god—especially Siwa.”

From our book Secrets of Bali, Fresh Light on the Morning of the World

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

The post Balinese Barong Ket Mask 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Gold paint, cotton
Style: Bali
Size: Made to measure

We need measurements for:

Arms
Wrist
Chest
Shoulder from left to right
Circumference of head (at the forehead)
Waist
Waist to ankle

We have a choice of colours:

Purple
Yellow
Green
Pink

Order Number: DC1A

Quintessentially Balinese, the legong dance is almost 200 years old. The young girl dancers symbolize angels. They are tightly bound in stunning, golden costumes. Supplied with fan.

The post Balinese Legong Dance Costume appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, paint, hair
Style: Bali
Size: Height 140 cm; Mask: Height 30 cm, Width (tusk to tusk) 25 cm; Tongue: Height 56 cm
Order Number: BRMB4

SOLD – Please let us know if you would like a similar one.

From our book Secrets of Bali:

The post Balinese Rangda Mask 4 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, paint
Style: Bali, Indonesia
Size:  Height 51 cm, Width 16.5  cm
Order Number: MHSBM1

About 60-70 years.

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

The post God appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, paint, hair
Style: Bali, Indonesia
Size:  Height 17 cm, Width 12  cm
Order Number: MB39A

The Jauk dances solo. He has long fingernails, a black moustache, bulging eyes and open mouth with teeth showing. The pale face indicates this Jauk’s sweet, good character.

Carved and signed by Ida Bagus Anom, the internationally recognized wood carver, mask and puppet maker, dancer and puppeteer.

Anom’s creations are deeply embedded in Balinese spiritual and cultural traditions. He adhered to sacred protocols, viewing masks not merely as artistic expressions but as vessels imbued with spiritual significance. His work often featured characters from traditional Topeng performances.

In addition to being a mask maker, Anom was a masked dancer and shadow puppeteer. His family has lived in the same compound in Bali for about 500 years, practising these traditional Balinese arts.

Anom learned mask making and masked dancing from his uncle and the art of shadow puppetry from his father, both of whom were well-known artists in Bali, and represented the ninth generation of mask makers  in his family .

“I put 40 coats of paint on my masks,” Anom  used to say. “I’ll sandpaper them, put 20 coats on, then sandpaper them again and put another 20 coats on. All of my masks are made from pule, a wood that’s light so the masks won’t be heavy when you put them your face.”

Anom has made masks on commission for drama director Peter Brooke, actor Terence Stark, and Danish drama teacher Peere Brahee and other international performers and directors.

He crafted masks for the Women’s Art Festival in North Carolina in the 1991.

Anom’s masks have been exhibited in the Art Center Denpasar in 1970, in Gianyar in 1985 and at Gedung Pola in Jakarta in 1977.

Photographs of his work have appeared in magazines, including Brutus, January 1990, Tribune Des Uns and Des Autres, 26 April 1989 and Travel and Leisure, July 1987.

In 1989, Anom was featured in National Geographic’s documentary “Bali: Masterpiece of the Gods,” highlighting his pivotal role in preserving Balinese cultural heritage. 

Anon’s masks are in the collection of the Santa Fe Folk Art Museum in New Mexico, and he was a participant in the exhibition Bali: Art, Ritual and Performance at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco in 2011. It was at this exhibition that Anom discovered, to his surprise, wood carvings made by his grandfather.

There is a permanent display at the San Francisco Exploratorium. 

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

The post Jauk carved and signed by Ida Bagus Anom appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 15.5 cm, width 14 cm
Order Number: MHSTM1

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again as evidenced by the patina.

There is an example in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

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

Material: Leather
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 26 cm, width 22 cm (ear to ear)
Order Number: MHSTM2

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again.

There is an example of a wooden one in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Timor Mask 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 24 cm, width 14.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTM3

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again as evidenced by the patina.

There is an example in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Timor Mask 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 47 cm, width 17 cm (including the handle)
Order Number: MHSTM4

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again as evidenced by the patina.

There is an example in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Timor Mask 4 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 28.5 cm, width 16 cm
Order Number: MHSTM5

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again as evidenced by the patina.

There is an example in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Timor Mask 5 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Leather
Style: Timor, probably East Timor
Size: Height 26 cm, Width 14 cm
Order Number: MHSTM6

Timor had a distinctive tradition of dance masks, whose origins and significance remain uncertain. Realistic masks were worn  by men to represent ancestors during dances and ceremonies, including victories in war. They were attached to a  headdress, wig or hood to hide the wearer’s identity. The whole lot was heavy. They are smooth and display cool power. They would have been worn again and again.

There is an example of a wooden one in Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Eric Kjellgren, 2007, page 244.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Timor Mask 6 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.