and the introduction of metal culture are the two main prehistoric events that influence the current picture in the Indonesia archipelago. A final remark may be made concerning the distinctive characteristics of the local art. It is usually assumed that both Austronesian culture and the metal culture had their own, characteristic formal or artistic "language." The style considered to be connected to the Neolithic is typified as "monumental symbolical" and is characterised by large-scale representations of humans and animals. The style connected to the metal era, especially to the bronze culture, is called "ornamental phantastical." The latter is more decorative in nature and holds the spiral form as one of its main motifs. This style has, for example, been found on the Dongson drums. They are often covered from top to bottom with decorations of curved lines and spirals and extremely stylised humans and animals (see Photographs 1.4 and 1.5). This "ornamental phantastical" style can as well be called the "Dongson style."
It must be noted, however, that relating art forms to the prehistoric cultures of Indonesia has become a matter of dispute. Recent excavations of ceramic materials reveal that the "Dongson style" is probably much older than the metal culture itself.7 For that reason no precise assessment as to the age of the traditional art styles of Maluku Tenggara can be made.
Photograph 1.3. Remnant of the tympanum of a bronze kettle drum in the village of Ami Das on Tanimbar. The name of the matching drum is ibur riti, "copper sack." The exact measurements of the drum are unknown.
Photograph 1.4. Picture of fragment of a bronze kettle drum showing a peacock figure, found on the island of Leti.
Photograph 1.5. Rubbing of a part of the tympanum of a kettle drum, found on Kei, showing flying birds and hunting scenes, among other things. On the tympanum were four bronze frogs (see Photograph 1.2).
Photograph 2.1. Ceremonial boats, belang, of Keiese village leaders. Each family monopolised certain flags and pennants flown on them.
As discussed in the introduction, the inhabitants of the remote islands of Maluku Tenggara lead a scanty and arduous existence. It is hard to imagine that this was once entirely different. In the past there were intensive trade contacts with islands within and outside the region, and Maluku Tenggara was even indirectly involved in world trade. Voyages played a dominant role in the culture of the region (see Part II).
With the arrival of the Dutch, this situation changed. The Dutch appeared as merchants and colonialists striving to monopolise trade and pacify the region. The inhabitants were robbed of their main trade contacts and income sources, and in the name of "civilisation" the Dutch set bounds to the Moluccans' traditional culture. It is ironic that the isolation of the "forgotten islands" nowadays, is to a great extent the result of the strong interference from outside during this period.
Lively Mutual Trade
There are no known written sources from the first and fifteenth centuries to provide direct information about the Southeast Moluccas. However, it can be inferred from other evidence that the islands maintained an intensive mutual barter trade during this period. The trade was extremely varied in character. Certain islands became well-known in the course of time for the special products they provided: the Kei islands for their boats, Kisar and Luang for their fabrics, Damer and other islands for their nutmeg, and the Aru islands for their birds of paradise and sea products, including mother-of-pearl and pearls.
Beside this, slaves were traded in the entire region. Inhabitants from the island of Kisar, for instance, traded very profitably in slaves and spices with the inhabitants of the surrounding islands. They also sailed to Timor and even to Malacca, where they traded their cargo for high profits. In 1643, when the sultan of the northern Moluccan island of Ternate heard about the great wealth of Kisar, he sent an invasion fleet to the island to capture many precious treasures.1
The islands of Maluku Tenggara were also called at by traders from outside the region. From southern Sulawesi, Macassars and Buginese shipped elephants' tusks, gold ornaments, swords and textiles to various places on the eastern Molucccas, and bartered these for copra, shells, turtles and other sea and reef products. The islanders in the western part of Maluku Tenggara obtained gold from Timor, which subsequently found its way eastwards via barter trade. Many of these imported goods still play an important role as precious family heirlooms in southeastern Moluccan society.2
Photographs 2.2. and 2.3. For centuries the exotic birds of paradise were among the most important produce from the Aru islands. The feathers were used in headgear throughout the world.
Photograph 2.4. Ceremonial dance performance on the Babar islands, during which women wear basta around the upper parts of their bodies. The sarongs are locally made ikat cloths.
The Spice Trade
Besides this traffic, Maluku Tenggara was involved in world trade via the Banda islands (Central Moluccas), long an important trade centre. The southeastern Moluccans readily disposed of their boats and birds of paradise as well as their sea and agricultural products, mostly obtaining metals and textiles in return. Beginning at least as early as the 15th century, the brilliant bird of paradise feathers from Am were transported to Banda and thence, via an extensive trade network, to other parts of the Indonesian archipelago and more remote regions; they were used as plumes on head decorations by Turks, Arabs and Persians.3
Written sources indicate trade activity by the inhabitants of the Banda islands was already being carried on by the 15th century. However, trade in the Moluccas existed from about the beginning of our era, according to annals dating from the Han dynasty (206 B.C. to A.D. 220). From these annals it appears that the Chinese were familiar with doves from the Moluccas.4 Cloves and nutmeg also found their way to the Roman Empire via Arab traders. 5 In later centuries, the spices were spread across large parts of the world by means of barter-trade through numerous intermediate stations. We may assume that the inhabitants of Maluku Tenggara must have come in touch with products that came in as barter for spices at an early stage.
The Banda islands were by far the most important staple market for spices. The inhabitants cultivated nutmeg and mace and obtained cloves from Ternate, and Tidore, as well as from some other small islands in the northern Moluccas. Later they also obtained these from Ambon and Seram.6 The Bandanese were entirely dependent on imports for their food supply due to the emphasis on intensive spice cultivation. The islands even had to import rice and sago.
Sago was shipped in to Banda from Seram and Irian Jaya, as well as from Kei and Aru in eastern Maluku Tenggara. The trading ships also contained slaves, reef products, dried parrots and birds of paradise as cargo. The people from Kei and Aru bartered their products for, among other things, textiles. These were brought to Banda by Javanese and Malayan traders from Java, Bali, Nusa Tenggara and the Indian subcontinent, where they were exchanged, together with rice, for spices.7
Striking among the abundance of textiles that reached Maluku Tenggara up to the 19th century, are the so-called basta. These are very long cotton cloths, printed with mostly red and blue patterns.
