also essential at ceremonies pronouncing the rank of the local ruler. The transition symbolism of these textiles is further developed by the inclusion of riders on mythical creatures, which are usually depicted aboard the ships. The degree of realism with which the ships and their passengers are presented varies greatly according to the particular time and place at which these textiles were woven. Different regional styles developed in Lampung, although key and spiral ornamentation was wideiy deployed in the background and filling detail of all these textiles. Some of these variations can be observed on surviving nineteenth-century examples of supplementary weft tampan, tatibin and patepai cloths, and also on the embroidered bands of women's skirts from the same region. On the large patepai the main ship motif appears either in red or blue, with the red ships usually showing far more elaborate detail than the more solid blue variety. The ceremonial hanging in Plate 162 is a fine example of the rare single red ship patepai, with wonderfully curved bows and deck structures filled with fanciful passengers and crew and pairs of noble elephants. Turmeric dyes have been generously used to produce a rich orange effect. Where two red ship images are displayed, as in the ceremonial hanging Plate 163, there always appears to be subtle variations in their depiction, since different sets of shed-sticks were apparently used to weave each image. On this textile the indigo blue is also a dominant colour.
Clothing is thus important as a symbol of status for the dead as well as the living, and as a system of signals intended for supernatural beings. For example, the bodies of unmarried Karen girls are dressed in the costume of married women, so that their souls can proceed unhindered to the realm of the dead, for such clothing is a signal to any evil spirits who might prevent the journey that a husband is following behind (Lewis and Lewis, 1984: 96).65 However, not all Southeast Asian peoples bury their dead in their finest fabrics. The Ifugao, for example, cover their corpses in used clothing, or if fine new cloths are used, these are torn slightly so that the waiting spirits, who also desire fine textiles, will not become jealous and steal the shrouds from those making their final journey (Lambrecht, 1958: 10). Textiles play a prominent role at many mortuary ceremonies at which the interplay between the realms of the spirits and ancestors, and the earthly domain of the living is clearly articulated.
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Beads also play an important part in transition ceremonies, including those associated with death, and many beads have been found in a number of ancient burial sites. The Toraja drape the beaded kandaureover the body of prominent people at funerals, some Dayak groups place beads under the eyelids of the corpse for the use of the soul in its passage to the next world (Dunsmore, 1978: 3), and the beaded 'singing' shawls used by young Karen women who chant at funerals are intended to aid the journey of transition (Campbell et al, 1978: 158). We know little about the functions of the huge beaded mats and hangings of Lampung, but it seems probable that, like the woven tampan and palepai textiles, the presence of these spectacular beaded objects at important transition rituals evoked protection and aid in dealing with the ancestor and spirit world.
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Many funeral arrangements emphasize the social order for the living, as well as the dead. Where alliances forged by marriage are the basis for social relationships, protocol at funerals must be carefully followed. In eastern Indonesia, for example, gifts are given to indicate the prestige and wealth of the deceased and the powerful connections of the extended family. In such cases, textiles are usually presented by one set of relatives and different types of 'male' grave goods, such as livestock, by the other. Fine textiles are given as shrouds to honour prominent relations. In some places this custom has escalated into a potlatch competition of conspicuous consumption, when dozens of richly decorated textiles are buried and large numbers of buffaloes, cattle and pigs are slaughtered.66
160,161
162,163
164,165
Designs representing architectural structures and manned boats have been found on ancient Southeast Asian pottery and metal objects dating from the Neolithic and Metal Ages and in early Austronesian rock art. Archaeologists have argued that the appearance of such designs upon objects found in burial sites suggests that they were intended to represent 'the ship of the dead'. Although ship-like structures have been prominent in funeral rites throughout Southeast Asia, it is misleading to assume that such depictions in the region's art always symbolized 'the ship of the dead'. The notion of a symbolic soul ship gives a fuller meaning to the motifs that appear on many traditional textiles, since the same cloths may be used at various stages in the life-cycle when an individual moves from one social or spiritual state to another. The huge palepai supplementary weft hangings of south Lampung in Sumatra, which are the possessions of the Paminggir clan leaders, are the finest examples of ship symbolism to be displayed at ceremonies of the life-cycle. Smaller tampan textiles, also containing these powerful transition symbols, are more widely used throughout the southern region of Sumatra for marriage ceremonies and initiations into adulthood, such as tooth-filing and circumcision.
tampan ceremonial cloth Paminggir people, Lampung, Sumatra, Indonesia handspun cotton, natural dyes supplementary weft weave 67.0 x 63.0 cm Australian National Gallery 1981.1103
The rich red ship images on the smaller tampan are often more schematic, and huge animals on board simple canoe-like vessels dominate the designs. There is usually a boat structure at both top and bottom of the tampan, and in some instances the design has been planned to read both ways. The size and dress of the human figures under large umbrella structures in Plate 164 indicate their superior status.
The association of the ship motif with rituals of human transition suggests that motifs representing the human form may also be situationally defined. Mythical animals with human riders are familiar images in ancient Southeast Asian design, particularly on objects required at rites of passage. It has been suggested that because the place of textiles is paramount at the funerals of significant members of east Sumbanese nobility, the horses and riders found on certain wraps (hinggi kombu) may serve as psychopomp for the final journey to the next world (Adams, 1969: 167). As such, these anthropomorphic riders and their steeds may, like the ship motifs, represent the transition from one life state to another for those present at these ceremomes.
(detail) tampan; titi jembatan agung ceremonial textile Paminggir people, Lampung, Sumatra, Indonesia handspun cotton, natural dyes supplementary weft weave 284.0 x 74.0 cm Art Gallery of South Australia 747A150
A series of tampan, removed from the loom without being divided, was not only used for the same ritual functions as the single square tampan but it was also given a unique place in certain Lampung ceremonies. This long brown and white fabric served as a floor runner along which a bridal couple walked towards a ceremonial bedroom. As 'king and queen' of the day, their textile pathway was known as the royal bridge, the titi jembatan agung (Gittinger, 1972). Late nineteenth century
(detail) lelangit sacred canopy Sasak people, Lombok, Indonesia handspun cotton, natural dyes slit-tapestry weave, tie-dyeing (?) 90.0 x 90.0 x 18.0 cm Australian Museum E.78856
This nineteenth-century canopy was woven with a rare and sacred type of brown cotton. The four sides of the box are worked in slit-tapestry weave in rich natural colours and it is possible that the plain centre has been lightly tie-dyed. A canopy in the collection of the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde, Leiden (2407-259), recorded as having come from Sewela in east Lombok, has tie-dyed circles in pale pastel shades scattered over a warm brown ground. The textile is hung as a heaven cloth or canopy (lelangif) above the deceased at traditional
