Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 191 cm, Width 38.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB1

There are drawings and text on both sides. There are black covers and on one side there is a drawing on the other side of the cover. 19 pages.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

Front and back covers are made of 2 or 3 sheets of parabaik paper, sometimes thickened and hardened with black lacquer. There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 147 cm, Width 37.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB2

This book is in 2 parts and the longer part in sellotaped together. The shorter part has 98 pages and the longer part has 18 pages. Both have text on both sides.

There are drawings and text on both sides. There are black covers and on one side there is a drawing on the other side of the cover. 19 pages.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

Front and back covers are made of 2 or 3 sheets of parabaik paper, sometimes thickened and hardened with black lacquer. There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 202 cm, Width 24 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB3

There are drawings and text on both sides. There are no covers. 33 pages.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

Front and back covers are made of 2 or 3 sheets of parabaik paper, sometimes thickened and hardened with black lacquer. There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 183 cm, Width 16 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB5

There are drawings and text on both sides, including on the reverse of the covers. There are wooden covers. 16 pages. Very good condition.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

Mid- 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 5 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 324 cm, Width 41 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB6

There are drawings and text on both sides. 24 pages. One of the covers is 80% detached.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 6 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 318 cm, Width 34 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB7

There are drawings and text on both sides.  21 pages.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 7 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size:  Longer part: Length 230 cm, Width 34 cm; Shorter part: Length 107 cm, Width 34 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB8

There are drawings and text on both sides.  16 pages and 7 pages (including covers).

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 8 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size:  Length 390 cm, Width 32.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABB9

There are drawings and text on both sides. A very long book of 33 pages. One of the covers has become detached.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

The books deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

Formulas to cure physical or mental illness, caused by evil spirits or an imbalance of the elements of earth, fire, water and wind, may be copied to a piece of mulberry paper for a candle ritual which takes place while Pali incantations are chanted. The ash from the burnt paper is mixed with water and drunk by the sick person. Drawings of ugly distorted creatures and deformed human heads are copied on to mulberry paper and rolled up in beeswax with a wick and a photograph of a sick person to form a candle and burnt to drive away evil spirits. Wild hogs, monkeys, lizards, tigers, cats and other animals are drawn so that their physical and mental characteristics may be transferred to humans.

Thick skins of wild hogs give protection against bullets, spears and swords, so  a drawing on mulberry paper, burnt and drunk or rubbed into the skin is popular with soldiers and policemen.

Lizards bring good luck and protection, so a drawing on mulberry paper may be kept and touched in times of danger.

Cows give courage, so soldiers swallow a drawing on a thin piece of mulberry paper or it is rubbed into the skin with oil or burnt with a candle and the ash drunk.

Letters also form drawings of humans with various qualities. Actors, singers and teachers would pick one with good speaking attributes.

Women having sex with horses is quite common, the woman hanging on to the horse’s underbelly. It is a love talisman given to those seeking a permanent relationship.

Monkeys and cats are agile, intelligent and fast and their drawings are favoured by soldiers and criminals.

Diagrams in the shape of a candle, filled with letters and numbers, indicate a candle ritual and an accompanying intonation. Tiered diagrams in squares represent the planes of existence of Buddhist cosmology, which may be copied on to mulberry paper or cotton the height of the sponsor, tied to a wick, rolled in beeswax to make a candle, and lit.

Horoscopes were written on cotton and on books made of mulberry paper. People consulted an expert sala to ascertain an auspicious day for a project. The day of a person’s birth is linked to a planet, a life force number and an animal. It’s a system of eight as Wednesday is counted as 2 – before noon and after noon. There is a box of 8 squares or 9 squares with the middle one blank. The sala fills in the boxes with the number for the birth day – Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, etc – and the corresponding life force number. He then counts clockwise for a man and anti-clockwise for a woman, adding them up until he reaches the person’s age.  The sala compares the starting square number and final number and can tell if the person is in an auspicious time period for the project. It can be used to see if potential marriage partners are compatible.

There are other divination systems involving numbers. Eight animals may be matched to the eight time periods. The animal at the starting point is compared to the animal at the stopping point and good or bad luck depends on their comparability. Animals such as naga, garuda, tiger, cow, cat, mouse, elephant, monkey, guinea pig, goat and lion.

Lucky numbers help in choosing lottery tickets, how much to give to a temple and how many offerings to present at a ceremony. Also when to travel, hold an event, build a house or even a city.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

There were no erasers. In case of a mistake, they applied a white lime paste to the surface.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age, were burned as part of a ritual, or have been eaten by white ants or other paper-eating insects. The ones that survive are bequeathed  to a male ritual expert in the next generation. If there is no one, they are burnt at the last owner’s cremation or given to a local temple where they are ritually cleansed and placed in the library.

There are still some temples following the same procedures but modernised, for example, they use photocopies of the drawings and diagrams, rather than original drawings on mulberry paper.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book 9 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Cotton, palm leaf
Style: Burma
Size:  Wrapper: Length 61 cm, Width 42 cm;  Book: Length 51 cm, Depth 3.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABBWB1

Highly valued palm-leaf manuscripts and sacred unbound lacquer pages called kamawasa were wrapped in a cloth cover called sapa-lwe to protect them from insects and dust. They were made strips of cotton and thread interwoven between a warp of bamboo sticks. They were interlaced for create lively geometric patterns.

Thin, long ribbons called sasigyo bound the pages of sacred manuscripts. They were tightly woven on a card loom and were patterned with monastic and royal symbols, such as posts hung with streamers or surmounted by hin-tha birds, stands for bells, and the donor’s name, title and pious aspirations.

Early 20th century.

There is a similar set in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, pages 287-288.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book Wrapper and Book 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Cotton, palm leaf
Style: Burma
Size:  Wrapper: Length 53 cm, Width 21 cm;  Book leaves: Length 56 cm, Width 4.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABBWB2

Highly valued palm-leaf manuscripts were wrapped in a cloth cover called sapa-lwe to protect them from insects and dust. They were made strips of cotton and thread interwoven between a warp of bamboo sticks. They were interlaced for create lively geometric patterns.

6 palm-leaf sheets.

Palm-leaf manuscripts came to Burma from India together with Buddhism. The earliest book found in Burma dates to the 5th century AD. Monks made copies of Buddhist texts by writing on the leaves of the palmyra palm with a stylus. They were fragile. Some were treatises on history, philosophy, literature, astrology, astronomy, technology, music, law and medicine.

The letters were engraved from left to right with a sharp iron stylus held perpendicularly by the first two fingers and thumb of the right hand, steadied by the thumbnail of the left hand. Both sides were inscribed. Writing was made visible by rubbing the surface with a cloth soaked in oil or a paste of ground charcoal mixed with gum. The number of leaves depended on the length of the text. It was a time consuming process and only a few pages could be written in a day.

The introduction of the printing press to Burma by missionaries in 1776 gradually led to the end of the palm-leaf book, and paper replaced them in the mid 19th century, although there are reports of monks using them in Upper Burma in the mid 1980s.

Early 20th century.

There is a similar one in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, page 287.

They also have wrappers in Laos for books in Buddhist temples.

There is a similar one in Legends in the Weaving, Dara Kanlaya, The Japan Foundation Asia Center, 2001 , page 84.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book Wrapper and Book 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Cotton, wood
Style: Burma
Size:  Wrapper: Length 49 cm, Width 40 cm;  Ribbons: 1: Length 67 cm, Width 4 cm, 2: Length 74 cm, Width 5 cm; Marker: Length 35.5 cm, Width 4 cm
Order Number: MHSTABBW1

Highly valued palm-leaf manuscripts and sacred unbound lacquer pages called kamawasa were wrapped in a cloth cover called sapa-lwe to protect them from insects and dust. They were made strips of cotton and thread interwoven between a warp of bamboo sticks. They were interlaced for create lively geometric patterns.

Thin, long ribbons called sasigyo bound the pages of sacred manuscripts. They were tightly woven on a card loom and were patterned with monastic and royal symbols, such as posts hung with streamers or surmounted by hin-tha birds, stands for bells, and the donor’s name, title and pious aspirations.

For easy reference the title and folio numbers of the manuscript was incised on a knife-shaped, tapering, wooden marker called a ga-byi-tan, which was inserted between the bindings of the sasigyo.

Early 20th century.

There is a similar set in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, pages 287-288.

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

The post Antique Burmese Book Wrapper, Ribbons and Marker appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Paper
Style: Burma
Size:  Length 59 cm, Width 54 cm
Order Number: MHSTABC1

Such charts are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can interpret them and perform rituals. They need to know the birth date of the client. There is faith in the power of nature. China influenced the Tai astrological system, especially the 12 year animal cycle of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Cockerel, Dog and Pig. Positive power is strongest at full moon. The moon is portrayed as a hare.

They deal with spells, practices and incantations to create harmony in personal relations, protection and good luck. There are rudimentary drawings of magical animals, whose bodies are drawn with letters and numbers, Hindu gods, men and women. There are magic letters and numbers. Many numbers have meanings and supernatural powers, such as 3, 4, 8, 9, 38, 40, 56, 99 and 108.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Chart appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Cotton or chintz cloth, lacquer, gold leaf, wood
Style: Burma
Size:  Length 52 cm, Width 12.5 cm, Depth 3.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABK1

There are 16 pages.

Kamawasa are the most beautiful of all Burmese sacred manuscripts, where no expense was spared. They contain extracts from the Pali Vinaya (rules for monks concerning their conduct, ordination and investiture). They were usually commissioned by parents whose son was entering the monkhood and it gave them merit.

There are approximately 16 unbound pages made from 4 folded layers of cotton or chintz cloth, thickly coated with lacquer, hardened to create a shiny, smooth, firm, pliant surface. Discarded waist cloths of kings and highly esteemed monks’ robes were often used.

About 6 lines of text is written on both sides in a square attractive script called magyi-zi (tamarind seed). Spaces and margins are decorated with foliage in gold leaf. The first and last pages have wider margins and are filled with drawings of lively celestial creatures.

The lacquered wooden covers enclosing the book are also covered with illustrations of celestial beings.

Many are split up and the pages sold piecemeal, but this is a complete book.

Early 20th century.

There is a similar one in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, Plate 60 and page 286.

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

The post Antique Burmese Kamawasa 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Cotton or chintz cloth, lacquer, gold leaf, wood
Style: Burma
Size:  Length 59 cm, Width 14 cm, Depth 4.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABK2

There are 16 pages.

Kamawasa are the most beautiful of all Burmese sacred manuscripts, where no expense was spared. They contain extracts from the Pali Vinaya (rules for monks concerning their conduct, ordination and investiture). They were usually commissioned by parents whose son was entering the monkhood and it gave them merit.

There are approximately 16 unbound pages made from 4 folded layers of cotton or chintz cloth, thickly coated with lacquer, hardened to create a shiny, smooth, firm, pliant surface. Discarded waist cloths of kings and highly esteemed monks’ robes were often used.

About 6 lines of text is written on both sides in a square attractive script called magyi-zi (tamarind seed). Spaces and margins are decorated with foliage in gold leaf. The first and last pages have wider margins and are filled with drawings of lively celestial creatures.

The lacquered wooden covers enclosing the book are also covered with illustrations of celestial beings.

Many are split up and the pages sold piecemeal, but this is a complete book.

Early 20th century.

There is a similar one in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, Plate 60 and page 286.

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

The post Antique Burmese Kamawasa 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Palm-leaf, lacquer, bamboo
Style: Burma
Size:  Length 50 cm, Width 16 cm, Depth 5.5 cm
Order Number: MHSTABPM1

A religious palm-leaf manuscript bound between lacquered wooden boards. The edges of the leaves have been lacquered.

Palm-leaf manuscripts came to Burma from India together with Buddhism. The earliest book found in Burma dates to the 5th century AD. Monks made copies of Buddhist texts by writing on the leaves of the palmyra palm with a stylus. They were fragile.

The letters were engraved from left to right with a sharp iron stylus held perpendicularly by the first two fingers and thumb of the right hand, steadied by the thumbnail of the left hand. Both sides were inscribed. Writing was made visible by rubbing the surface with a cloth soaked in oil or a paste of ground charcoal mixed with gum. The number of leaves depended on the length of the text. It was a time consuming process and only a few pages could be written in a day.

The introduction of the printing press to Burma by missionaries in 1776 gradually led to the end of the palm-leaf book, and paper replaced them in the mid 19th century, although there are reports of monks using them in Upper Burma in the mid 1980s.

For binding the leaves were stacked in order and put between two wooden lacquered boards called kyan. The number of leaves depended on the length of the text. Two holes were bored through the folios and bamboo pins were passed through to secure the pages.

When read they were placed on stands and handled with care and respect. Women were forbidden to hold them on their laps. two hands were required to hold the palm leaves which were turned away from the reader after they were read.

Scribes were usually laymen hired by monks or religious lay people. While working the scribes lived in a monastery. Only a few pages could be transcribed in a day. 3,000 men were listed as scribes in the 1891 census. Sponsoring a manuscript gave the donor merit. One of the first duties of a newly crowned king was to commission a set of Tripitaka and present it to a monastery.

19th – early 20th century.

There is a similar one in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, page 281.

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

The post Antique Burmese Palm-Leaf Manuscript appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree, paint
Style: Burma
Size:  Height 100 cm, Width 39 cm
Order Number: MHSTABSB1

The drawings are possibly from the Buddha’s life on one side and text on the other. The writing is possibly Shan or Mon.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts.

Many parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Story Book 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree, paint, metal covers
Style: Burma
Size:  Height 19 cm, Width 87 cm
Order Number: MHSTABSB12

There are drawings on both sides.

Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

Red is from cinnabar. In Buddhism, red symbolises wisdom, dignity, fortune and virtue.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand) and give information about Tai cosmology and cosmic power in drawings, diagrams and text. There are illustrations of spirits, spells in secret codes and syllables.  Similar designs are found on clothes and tattoos. Some of the meanings are no longer known. Temple murals inspire some of the drawings.

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion.

Before the early 20th century most people could not read or write unless they went to a monastic school and that was only for males. Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts.

Many parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age.

Early – mid 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Story Book 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 202 cm, Width 40 cm
Order Number: MHSTABTB1

There are drawings and text on both sides. 14 pages.

Tattooing is an ancient tradition in Southeast Asia. Chinese records of the 4th century AD refer to it. The Tai people of Lan Na and Shan States had extensive tattoos on parts of their bodies until about 50 years ago, especially soldiers and monks. They were decorative but also certain patterns, with correct spells and incantations, gave protection from sickness and injury caused by evil spirits. Tattoos can also make a person popular and successful in love. Some can make a person invisible if he touches it and makes an invocation.

Tattoos are done on an auspicious day calculated according to the waxing and waning of the moon and the person’s birthday. The night of the full moon in November is the most auspicious. The person prepares himself by keeping the 5 precepts: no killing of a live being, no stealing, no lies, no adultery, and no alcohol. Also no showering for 7 days before the process and avoiding washing lines that have women’s lower clothes hanging on them.

The tattoo master draws an outline on the skin. He may have a wooden stamp for popular designs. An expert may even dispense with them. The needle is about 40 cm long with the brass figure of an angel or spirit at one end. The other end is a needle with groves to hold the ink, which is released on pricking the skin.

The ink is blue-black, red or colourless. The most common is blue-black made of animal fat, soot from a kitchen fire and a pig, bear or bull’s bile. Red is made from cinnabar, animal bile and herbs for the upper body. Blue-black does not fade but red does. Invisible ink is made from coconut or sesame oil. Invisible tattoos are just as powerful.

After the tattoo is carried out the person is supposed to keep at least one of the 5 precepts and not to eat offal or certain vegetables and meat served at funerals, failing which he will have a painful illness. They tattoos have to be recharged from time to time with a ritual to retain their power.

Because of the pain extensive tattooing gives a person moral status. They are a symbol of courage and endurance and show suitability for marriage. They represent a rite of passage from youth to manhood.

Tattoo manuscripts are like pattern books. Clients choose the designs and where they are to be placed. Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand).

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can perform rituals and give tattoos. The sala learn tattoo techniques, meditation, and magical incantations in Pali. They go through an initiation ceremony. Their implements and books are kept on a special altar.

Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

Tatttoo books contain drawings and significant letters and syllables. There  are  shorthand Pali incantations and magic spells that are tattooed on the upper body and back and down the arms. There are square, rectangular and circular diagrams filled with numbers for astrological calculations and birth details. There are Hindu characters, Buddhist and spirit iconography. Birds, animals and monsters also: vultures, pigeons, civet cats, lions, tigers, rats, bats, elephants, monkeys.

Soldiers favour tigers, monkeys and cats, which are agile, fearless, intelligent and fast. These tattoos are also popular with criminals. They believe the animal’s characteristics will be transferred to them. Incantations and spells are inscribed around the image.

Wild hogs, which have thick skins, give protection against bullets, spears and swords, are popular with construction workers and street gangs. Cows give courage. Elephants bring good luck. The sacred goose brings luck in business and travel. Singers and musicians choose kinnari, which are half human and half bird, as they have good voices. House lizards with forked tails bring good luck.

Tattoos can be so powerful that the sala may circle the image with words in Pali to reduce their potency and danger.

Tattooing used to be for men but now women are also tattooed.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Tattoo Book 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 280 cm, Width 41 cm
Order Number: MHSTABTB2

There are drawings and text on both sides, including the inside of the covers. 19 pages.

Tattooing is an ancient tradition in Southeast Asia. Chinese records of the 4th century AD refer to it. The Tai people of Lan Na and Shan States had extensive tattoos on parts of their bodies until about 50 years ago, especially soldiers and monks. They were decorative but also certain patterns, with correct spells and incantations, gave protection from sickness and injury caused by evil spirits. Tattoos can also make a person popular and successful in love. Some can make a person invisible if he touches it and makes an invocation.

Tattoos are done on an auspicious day calculated according to the waxing and waning of the moon and the person’s birthday. The night of the full moon in November is the most auspicious. The person prepares himself by keeping the 5 precepts: no killing of a live being, no stealing, no lies, no adultery, and no alcohol. Also no showering for 7 days before the process and avoiding washing lines that have women’s lower clothes hanging on them.

The tattoo master draws an outline on the skin. He may have a wooden stamp for popular designs. An expert may even dispense with them. The needle is about 40 cm long with the brass figure of an angel or spirit at one end. The other end is a needle with groves to hold the ink, which is released on pricking the skin.

The ink is blue-black, red or colourless. The most common is blue-black made of animal fat, soot from a kitchen fire and a pig, bear or bull’s bile. Red is made from cinnabar, animal bile and herbs for the upper body. Blue-black does not fade but red does. Invisible ink is made from coconut or sesame oil. Invisible tattoos are just as powerful.

After the tattoo is carried out the person is supposed to keep at least one of the 5 precepts and not to eat offal or certain vegetables and meat served at funerals, failing which he will have a painful illness. They tattoos have to be recharged from time to time with a ritual to retain their power.

Because of the pain extensive tattooing gives a person moral status. They are a symbol of courage and endurance and show suitability for marriage. They represent a rite of passage from youth to manhood.

Tattoo manuscripts are like pattern books. Clients choose the designs and where they are to be placed. Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand).

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can perform rituals and give tattoos. The sala learn tattoo techniques, meditation, and magical incantations in Pali. They go through an initiation ceremony. Their implements and books are kept on a special altar.

Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

Tatttoo books contain drawings and significant letters and syllables. There  are  shorthand Pali incantations and magic spells that are tattooed on the upper body and back and down the arms. There are square, rectangular and circular diagrams filled with numbers for astrological calculations and birth details. There are Hindu characters, Buddhist and spirit iconography. Birds, animals and monsters also: vultures, pigeons, civet cats, lions, tigers, rats, bats, elephants, monkeys.

Soldiers favour tigers, monkeys and cats, which are agile, fearless, intelligent and fast. These tattoos are also popular with criminals. They believe the animal’s characteristics will be transferred to them. Incantations and spells are inscribed around the image.

Wild hogs, which have thick skins, give protection against bullets, spears and swords, are popular with construction workers and street gangs. Cows give courage. Elephants bring good luck. The sacred goose brings luck in business and travel. Singers and musicians choose kinnari, which are half human and half bird, as they have good voices. House lizards with forked tails bring good luck.

Tattoos can be so powerful that the sala may circle the image with words in Pali to reduce their potency and danger.

Tattooing used to be for men but now women are also tattooed.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Tattoo Book 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Inner bark of the mulberry tree
Style: Burma
Size: Length 160 cm, Width 37 cm
Order Number: MHSTABTB3

There are drawings and text on both sides. 13 pages.

Tattooing is an ancient tradition in Southeast Asia. Chinese records of the 4th century AD refer to it. The Tai people of Lan Na and Shan States had extensive tattoos on parts of their bodies until about 50 years ago, especially soldiers and monks. They were decorative but also certain patterns, with correct spells and incantations, gave protection from sickness and injury caused by evil spirits. Tattoos can also make a person popular and successful in love. Some can make a person invisible if he touches it and makes an invocation.

Tattoos are done on an auspicious day calculated according to the waxing and waning of the moon and the person’s birthday. The night of the full moon in November is the most auspicious. The person prepares himself by keeping the 5 precepts: no killing of a live being, no stealing, no lies, no adultery, and no alcohol. Also no showering for 7 days before the process and avoiding washing lines that have women’s lower clothes hanging on them.

The tattoo master draws an outline on the skin. He may have a wooden stamp for popular designs. An expert may even dispense with them. The needle is about 40 cm long with the brass figure of an angel or spirit at one end. The other end is a needle with groves to hold the ink, which is released on pricking the skin.

The ink is blue-black, red or colourless. The most common is blue-black made of animal fat, soot from a kitchen fire and a pig, bear or bull’s bile. Red is made from cinnabar, animal bile and herbs for the upper body. Blue-black does not fade but red does. Invisible ink is made from coconut or sesame oil. Invisible tattoos are just as powerful.

After the tattoo is carried out the person is supposed to keep at least one of the 5 precepts and not to eat offal or certain vegetables and meat served at funerals, failing which he will have a painful illness. They tattoos have to be recharged from time to time with a ritual to retain their power.

Because of the pain extensive tattooing gives a person moral status. They are a symbol of courage and endurance and show suitability for marriage. They represent a rite of passage from youth to manhood.

Tattoo manuscripts are like pattern books. Clients choose the designs and where they are to be placed. Burmese folding books date back to the 11th century. They are called parabaik. They are strips of paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree (Morus indica), up to 12 metres in length, folded like a concertina or accordion. The paper was made in the Shan States and is soft and fibrous and does not tear easily.

There are black parabaik and white parabaik. The black ones are coated with charcoal powder and the white ones with chalk powder, black ink and gum. Black ink is made from soot and animal or fish bile. The white ones are finer. Writing is usually on both sides of the paper.

They are concerned with the magical religious systems of the Tai people of the Shan States of Burma and Lan Na (northern Thailand).

The  Shan and  Lan Na people are Theravada Buddhists and include aspects of Hinduism and spirit religion. People visit experts called sala and some Buddhist monks, who can perform rituals and give tattoos. The sala learn tattoo techniques, meditation, and magical incantations in Pali. They go through an initiation ceremony. Their implements and books are kept on a special altar.

Buddhist monks and expert laymen made the manuscripts. The text is in a variety of Tai scripts, but Burmese, Khmer and central Thai script may also be used. Two or more scripts are often present. Shorthand is used. Words and phrases are sometimes placed inside diagrams.

Tatttoo books contain drawings and significant letters and syllables. There  are  shorthand Pali incantations and magic spells that are tattooed on the upper body and back and down the arms. There are square, rectangular and circular diagrams filled with numbers for astrological calculations and birth details. There are Hindu characters, Buddhist and spirit iconography. Birds, animals and monsters also: vultures, pigeons, civet cats, lions, tigers, rats, bats, elephants, monkeys.

Soldiers favour tigers, monkeys and cats, which are agile, fearless, intelligent and fast. These tattoos are also popular with criminals. They believe the animal’s characteristics will be transferred to them. Incantations and spells are inscribed around the image.

Wild hogs, which have thick skins, give protection against bullets, spears and swords, are popular with construction workers and street gangs. Cows give courage. Elephants bring good luck. The sacred goose brings luck in business and travel. Singers and musicians choose kinnari, which are half human and half bird, as they have good voices. House lizards with forked tails bring good luck.

Tattoos can be so powerful that the sala may circle the image with words in Pali to reduce their potency and danger.

Tattooing used to be for men but now women are also tattooed.

Many magical parabaik books have not survived because they have deteriorated with humidity and age.

19th – early 20th century.

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

The post Antique Burmese Tattoo Book 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.