The Tree and The Mountain

A number of natural objects may be interpreted as representing the cosmos, and in many Indonesian cultures the tree is a symbol of the link between the earth (the abode of humans) and the heavens (the dwelling place of the gods). Some Indonesian origin-myths tell of god-ancestors moving up and down this cosmic tree to the Middle World, which was inhabited by humans in the process of creating the earth. According to these legends, certain ancestors were themselves transformed into cosmic trees, and in a number of Indonesian cultures symbolic trees, constructed of precious heirlooms such as textiles, mats and spears, are displayed on ceremonial occasions when the presence of ancestor deities is invited.

One such symbolic tree can be seen on the Ot Danum mat, where it appears hung with banners, rare Chinese plates and sacred gongs, and the prized heads of slain enemies. Other trees on this nineteenth-century mat are also hung with sacred gongs, while the mountain images include further prized heirlooms — rare Chinese plates and giant martavan storage jars — guarded by dangerous serpents and scorpions. The images on this and similar plaited fibre mats — which were probably the precursors of woven textiles in Southeast Asia — resemble those found on cloths produced in the area. Mat-making is still being practised by the Dayak groups of Kalimantan, the Indonesian region of Borneo, and, according to tradition, their ceremonial rattan mats continue to be laid down for important persons, and for heirloom objects, at special feasts.

Many textiles from the Indonesian archipelago are decorated by weaving bright, supplementary threads into the surface of the fabric to provide a pattern. From the island of Sumba in eastern Indonesia, a cylindrical woman's skirt in handspun cotton and supplementary warp weave displays the ancient image of the skull tree (andong). This motif is a representation of the branch, hung with enemy heads, which is placed on a central mound during village rites conducted to induce fertility and community well-being. The skull tree is also a popular motif on the famous Sumba warp ikat men's wraps. The dyed threads in the fabric of these garments — red from the roots of the Morinda citrifolia tree, orange and yellow from the turmeric root (Curcuma domestica), blues and blacks from the leaves of the indigo bush (Indigofera tinctoria) and from local muds — are supplemented on many cloths by tan highlights, which are carefully painted on after the fabric is woven.

There are strong similarities in both the techniques and the raw materials (locally grown cotton and vegetable dyes) which are used to decorate textiles throughout the eastern Indonesian islands. Ikat — which is produced by dyeing patterns onto the warp or weft threads before the fabric is woven — is expertly used by the weavers of Indonesia, especially in the eastern part of the archipelago. The process involves tying off sections of the threads, as the pattern dictates, before immersing them in natural dyes. The tree motifs which are sometimes used to decorate the cloths made in this region arise from a variety of sources. While the skull tree may be an ancient motif on Sumba, the tree and flower motifs on the warp ikat bands of women's skirts (ei) on the neighbouring island of Savu date from the late nineteenth century. Influenced by European lace and embroidery samplers, they are generally known as lemari, or cupboard patterns, in recognition of their similarity to the elaborate carving found on heavy colonial furniture.

The source of the tree and mound design on another cylindrical skirt (pou) from the nearby island of Roti is the silk patola, a highly valued Indian textile which was bestowed over the centuries on members of the Rotinese aristocracy by Dutch colonial administrators. The use of designs which derive from such prestigious sources is often restricted to the members of the local nobility, who have inherited these rare imported Indian trade textiles as treasured heirlooms. In many cases, certain motifs which appear on these heirloom fabrics have been reworked into the structure and design of local textiles to produce a distinctively Rotinese cloth. Because these cloths are woven on simple backstrap looms, the width of the fabric is usually quite narrow. Hence, items of apparel produced throughout the Indonesian archipelago, whether flat cloths or circular skirts, are usually constructed of two or three panels which are carefully joined together to form a single garment.

Another type of Indian trade cloth, the painted cotton palampore, features a flowering tree design which has also provided a spectacular image for certain Indonesian textiles. The form of this tree, with its sinuous trunk and rich variety of lush flowers and leaves, has been a popular influence on the fine cotton batik cloths of Java. Regional preferences for certain colour and design structures have resulted in splendid variations in the depiction of the flowering tree. The batiks of the north coast favour light grounds, against which the main patterns appear in bold relief. In Cirebon, for instance, on the north coast of west Java, blacks and dark browns contrast with the stark white or cream of the base cloth, which is carefully covered in protective wax during the dye process. The skirt cloths from Lasem and other coastal batik-making centres further east are far more colourful, with creams, reds and blues being the predominant colours. On some cloths additional bright colours are achieved by painting in details. The striking, triangular tumpal end-motifs of Lasem batiks were particularly popular in Sumatra, and many of these Javanese batiks from Lasem were exported there in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when they displaced Indian trade cloths as heirlooms. On the batik skirts, the mound or mountain on which the Indian tree appears has usually been reduced to fibrous roots or a decorative zigzag line.

Painting and woodblock printing are rarely applied to textiles in Southeast Asia, although they are widely used in India. For the Toraja peoples of central Sulawesi (Celebes), it is likely that these techniques developed as a means of creating local replacements for the Indian trade cottons which, for centuries, have been treasured as sacred heirlooms by the prominent leaders of Toraja society. Toraja wood-carving skills are exceptional, and when similar techniques have occasionally been applied to textile decoration, the results are charming. The exact origins of some of these textiles remain problematic since their designs combine elements of both Indian and Toraja iconography. For the Toraja people, however, both local and Indian painted cottons are known as sacred ma'a, and are believed to be gifts of the ancestral deities. In Toraja ceremonies symbolic trees are also fashioned from sacred textiles, such as the ma'a, and magical heirloom swords.

The mountain shape, from which the tree image often sprouts in Indonesian art, also varies in the way it is represented on textiles. According to some legends, the original ancestors emerged out of mountains and volcanoes to establish the earliest settlements. Deities are believed to inhabit the high roofs of traditional houses, and mystics often meditate on the hilltops. The strong influence of Hinduism and Buddhism, which were established in the islands in the first millennium AD, can still be detected in certain parts of the region. Images of the cosmic mountain, Mt Meru, where the gods are believed to dwell, appear in stylized form in the art of certain Indonesian peoples. Balinese textiles, for instance, often include the forms of great architectural monuments which were constructed to represent the cosmic mountain. Perhaps the most striking example is the symmetrical, domed stupa-shape which appears on the sacred geringsing textiles. These are woven in the village of Tenganan, where patterns are achieved by tying and dyeing both warp and weft threads into an amazingly complex double-ikat design. Domed architectural images are also found on cloths from Java and Sumatra, where ancient Hindu and Buddhist temples still stand. Stylized temple and tree-on-mountain triangles can also be identified in the popular decorative borders of the rectangular ceremonial shoulder cloths and sashes of many Sumatran cultures. Worked in exotic threads of silk and gold, these motifs are often described by the weavers as the tree trunk (batang kayu) or the bamboo shoot (pucuk rebung). In embroidered form they sometimes also resemble the conifer or tear motif found on a Kashmir (or Paisley) shawl.

The mountain is a popular image on Javanese ceremonial clothes. On the huge dodot cotton wraps, which are reserved for their rituals, such as weddings, of the nobility, obscure mountain ranges can be identified in the overall pattern of schematized flora and fauna. Realistic interpretations of the landscape are rare, however, in central Javanese art. Prominent mountain images are usually found within traditions which have been influenced by Chinese artistic conventions, where multi-layered rocks of graded colour are characteristic forms. The batik designers of Java’s north coast have imaginatively reworked these rocky landscapes into fanciful shapes such as writhing dragons and draggy elephants. A tree can often be found sprouting from these mythical creatures.

Many of the peoples of Indonesia have been followers of Islam for several centuries. The arrival of that religion in the region has affected both the meaning of motifs and the manner in which they have been depicted on ceremonial textiles. Among the Paminggir people of Lampung, Sumatra, the motifs appearing on the famous supplementary weft 'ship' cloth became increasingly simplified under the influence of Islamic constraints on ancestral designs. Ship cloths were traditionally decorated with huge ships which symbolized life transitions, and they were displayed at ceremonies to celebrate these rites of passage. The weavers of west Sumbawa also gradually adopted schematic decorative patterns, although the ancient trees and birds can still be discovered in the design maze on their metallic supplementary weft brocades. However, on the lively hangings which festoon the Malay bridal bed or circumcision throne, the tree and mountain remain dominant images. Worked in gold thread which is couch-embroidered onto imported coloured fabrics, and brightened with slivers of mirror and eye-catching sequins, these valances are known as tirai, a corruption of torah or toran. The latter term is applied to embroidered textiles of similar dimensions in Central Asia and Islamic India.

The tree and mountain patterns have occupied an important symbolic and decorative position in Indonesian cultures over several millennia. And while these images can be found in a variety of media — wood, stone, metal, paint and cloth — it is in the textile arts that their depiction is most splendid.