Lesley S Pullen
Representation of Textiles on Classical Javanese Sculpture
Thesis completed and PhD awarded in October 2017.
SOAS Department of Art and Archaeology
My monograph based on the 2017 PhD titled
Patterned Splendour, Textiles presented on Javanese Metal and Stone Sculptures from eight to the fifteenth century
Released April 2021
Supervisors: Christian Luczanits
Thesis completed and PhD awarded in October 2017.
SOAS Department of Art and Archaeology
My monograph based on the 2017 PhD titled
Patterned Splendour, Textiles presented on Javanese Metal and Stone Sculptures from eight to the fifteenth century
Released April 2021
Supervisors: Christian Luczanits
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Papers
word tumpal as “edge, border” . The orthography
for the word tumpal means “triangular, cloth head”
designed on the vertical edge of the kain (cloth), both
singular and facing each other. In a 2018 axiological
study of the tumpal batik motif, the origin of the term
tumpal is attributed to Java, and the meaning of this
triangular motif is interpreted as divinity, knowledge
and power. This study suggests that the tumpal
motif “was born because of the existence of social
interactions between traders and trade that occurred
in Indonesia”, and this motif can be found in both
batik and woven cloth .
on Classical Javanese Sculpture, which addressed the repeat patterns
on a corpus of Javanese figurative sculptures dating from the 9th to
14th centuries. It focuses on just three, late 13th-century stone sculptures
originating from the Singhasāri period in East Java with bas-relief textile
patterns that are now severely worn or nearly obliterated.
Ashta Dikpālakas, Dikpālas or Dikpālakas are the guardians of the
eight directions, who together with the guardian of the nadir and the
guardian of the zenith, reside in their respective quarters of the sky and
are responsible for protecting the ten directions of the world. In her 1955
article, The Dikpālakas in Ancient Java, Van Lohuizen-de Leeuw addressed
the surviving five Dikpālaka statues from Can.d.
i Singosari.1 These are Agni,
the guardian of the Southeast whose vehicle or vāhana is a grey goat;
Yama, the guardian of the South whose vehicle is a buffalo; Nairrti, the
guardian of the Southwest whose vehicle is an anthropomorphic being or
bhūta; Kuvera, the guardian of the North whose vehicle is a ram; and the
guardian of the nadir, seated on a tortoise, who would have resided under
the temple. The statues of Agni and the guardian of the nadir remain in
situ at Can.d.
i Singosari, the Nairr. ti and Yama now stand in the Wan Kiap
Sie temple in Jakarta, and the Kuvera is missing. Our earliest knowledge
of these five statues derives from drawings from Raffles’ History of Java,2
photographs by Brandes,3 and descriptions by Blom,4 which suggest
that the Dikpālakas originated in Can.d.
i Singosari during the reign of
King Kr. tanāgara. Statues such as these were added to the temple by the
patron for various reasons, often as a form of protection or as guardians;
however, as these scattered five statues are the sole survivors, we can only
surmise where the original 10 statues were located in the temple complex
and how they were enjoined in any temple rituals.
In this article, I address only the surviving fragments of the guardian of
the nadir and Nairrti, together with an unidentified goddess at Can.d.
i
Singosari, of which no earlier images have been found. I chose to present
these three sculptures they have not been widely published and their
worn textile patterns have not been documented. This article recognises
the importance of acknowledging the seriously worn as well as the almost
perfectly preserved sculptures.
Conference Papers
It is dated to c.1300, this damaged Tantric Buddhist sculpture similar on stylistic grounds to the complete sculpture of Prajnaparamita in the Museum Nasional, Jakarta which discovered in Singosari. Academics have proposed the Muarajambi statue was also produced in East Java and carried by sea to Sumatra. However, unlike the Jakarta Prajnaparamita, which exhibits only one textile pattern, the Muarajambi sculpture displays three different and distinct patterns. The kain on Prajnaparamita displays a simple four-petal lotus double roundel motif, overlaid with a sash which displays an intricate lotus scrolling vine motif, neither patterns survives on any regional textiles today. The border of the kain and the ends of the sash show a theme in the form of a floral triangle, possibly representing a pucuk rebung, which is a surviving traditional motif in regional textiles.
The scrolling vine of lotus flowers and floral triangle motifs are also clearly evident in late 13th century Yuan ceramics. Ceramic shards have also been uncovered at the Muarajambi site. Overall the patterns on the dress bear a likeness to Chinese ornament of a similar period.
This paper raises issues concerning these intricate patterns, the weaving techniques required to produce them, and their possible Chinese origins. From such remarkable textiles, either carried in by dignitaries and pilgrims or produced locally, Malayu Jambi has contributed a distinct regional element to textile patterning.
This paper addresses four figurative stone sculptures from East Java, which do exhibit a resurgence of Indian art styles — reflecting both 4th to 6th century Gupta and 8th to 12th-century Pāla styles, The statue of Mañjuśrī Arapacana c.1268 in the State Hermitage Museum, and two statues of Prajñāpāramitā of the late-13th century. One sculpture is in situ at Caṇḍi Singosari and one in the Museum Nasional Indonesia, these along with the figure of a royal couple of the late 13th early-14th century also in the Museum Nasional Indonesia.
This paper reveals how specific features of the arts of the Gupta and Pāla are evident in these four later Javanese sculptures. Furthermore, it addresses the intricate textile patterns carved in bas relief on the kain or cloth of these figurative sculptures, which conversely are not evident in any Indian counterparts. This paper proposes such diverse textiles reflect the position of Java within the international maritime trade network. Certain of these textile patterns, which endure to the present in the sartorial vocabulary of the Javanese, offer us a visual inventory of valued luxury objects long since perished.
This vital sculpture is un-published since J.L.A Brandes in 1909. The fine line drawing of this sculpture in Brandes’ publication is accurate except in one regard. The detail of the patterned textile covering the lower limbs of this bodhisattva- depicted merely as a series of scrawls within circles.
Following a close study of this sculpture during its temporary exhibition in 2016, this paper explores the possible sources of the detailed roundel pattern depicted on the lower garment. It will analyse how this pattern might further inform us of the interconnectedness of insular Southeast Asia in the 13th century.
The last Singasari king Sáng Srí Síwabúda (1268-1292) known as Kṛtanagara, founded his funerary candi near Malang which scholars date to circa 1300. Some scholars claim the unfinished first terrace of this candi is Śaivite while the second reflects a Mahāyāna Buddhist dedication. While Śaivism was generally the religion of the state and the populace at this time, Kṛtanagara is known to have embraced Tantrism.
There exist three Gaṇeśa images, two seated and one standing, and a standing Durgā
Mahiṣāsuramardinī image dated to late 13th century, together with a standing Bhairava image dated to early 14th century. These five monumental sculptures share one common decorative element, they all feature textiles carved in relief depicting skulls or heads. Mostly represented on a base encircled with skulls, some with snakes as body ornaments, and some with skulls resting on the crescent moon in matted hair.
There do not appear to be any sculptures from before the 13th century, or following the death of Kṛtanagara which display such unusual Śaiva-Buddha tantric imagery on their textiles. This paper reveals the extent of these distinct tantric patterns on this group of five sculptures. It concludes as to why these textiles display such motifs and speculate on the possible motivation of their patrons.
Talks
Whilst the sculptures clearly reflect the influence of the Indian Sub-Continent, some of the textile patterns may have originated in Java and been transferred to India by travellers carrying goods in both directions. This lecture unfolds many of the complex patterns revealed on these sculptures, including some with Tantric iconography. The lecturer also explores possible places of origin, including Indo-Persia or China, or indeed indigenous to Java.
Illustrated with maps, photos, drawings, and supporting images of similar later textiles, this lecture introduces a new art history publication that presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of these textiles. It argues that these sculptures represent the artistic heritage of the luxury cloths traded across Asia during this era.
This talk will address the complexities of researching and analysing such a variety of sculptures in a broad range of materials and will be well illustrated with photographs and supporting images of similar 20th-century cloths. Using the empirical methodology and with the support of detailed line drawings, the textile patterns are revealed. This talk will explore some of the complex patterned textiles revealed on these sculptures and their possible origins in China and Indo-Persia, placing Java and Sumatra within a cosmopolitan world.
This talk introduces a new art history publication which presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of these patterned textiles and argues that these sculptures represent the artistic heritage of the traded luxury cloths circulating within Asia during this era.
Illustrated with numerous photographs and through detailed line drawings, and with supporting images of similar 20th century cloths, this talk will explore many of the complex patterned textiles revealed on these sculptures, and their possible origins in China and Indo-Persia.
word tumpal as “edge, border” . The orthography
for the word tumpal means “triangular, cloth head”
designed on the vertical edge of the kain (cloth), both
singular and facing each other. In a 2018 axiological
study of the tumpal batik motif, the origin of the term
tumpal is attributed to Java, and the meaning of this
triangular motif is interpreted as divinity, knowledge
and power. This study suggests that the tumpal
motif “was born because of the existence of social
interactions between traders and trade that occurred
in Indonesia”, and this motif can be found in both
batik and woven cloth .
on Classical Javanese Sculpture, which addressed the repeat patterns
on a corpus of Javanese figurative sculptures dating from the 9th to
14th centuries. It focuses on just three, late 13th-century stone sculptures
originating from the Singhasāri period in East Java with bas-relief textile
patterns that are now severely worn or nearly obliterated.
Ashta Dikpālakas, Dikpālas or Dikpālakas are the guardians of the
eight directions, who together with the guardian of the nadir and the
guardian of the zenith, reside in their respective quarters of the sky and
are responsible for protecting the ten directions of the world. In her 1955
article, The Dikpālakas in Ancient Java, Van Lohuizen-de Leeuw addressed
the surviving five Dikpālaka statues from Can.d.
i Singosari.1 These are Agni,
the guardian of the Southeast whose vehicle or vāhana is a grey goat;
Yama, the guardian of the South whose vehicle is a buffalo; Nairrti, the
guardian of the Southwest whose vehicle is an anthropomorphic being or
bhūta; Kuvera, the guardian of the North whose vehicle is a ram; and the
guardian of the nadir, seated on a tortoise, who would have resided under
the temple. The statues of Agni and the guardian of the nadir remain in
situ at Can.d.
i Singosari, the Nairr. ti and Yama now stand in the Wan Kiap
Sie temple in Jakarta, and the Kuvera is missing. Our earliest knowledge
of these five statues derives from drawings from Raffles’ History of Java,2
photographs by Brandes,3 and descriptions by Blom,4 which suggest
that the Dikpālakas originated in Can.d.
i Singosari during the reign of
King Kr. tanāgara. Statues such as these were added to the temple by the
patron for various reasons, often as a form of protection or as guardians;
however, as these scattered five statues are the sole survivors, we can only
surmise where the original 10 statues were located in the temple complex
and how they were enjoined in any temple rituals.
In this article, I address only the surviving fragments of the guardian of
the nadir and Nairrti, together with an unidentified goddess at Can.d.
i
Singosari, of which no earlier images have been found. I chose to present
these three sculptures they have not been widely published and their
worn textile patterns have not been documented. This article recognises
the importance of acknowledging the seriously worn as well as the almost
perfectly preserved sculptures.
It is dated to c.1300, this damaged Tantric Buddhist sculpture similar on stylistic grounds to the complete sculpture of Prajnaparamita in the Museum Nasional, Jakarta which discovered in Singosari. Academics have proposed the Muarajambi statue was also produced in East Java and carried by sea to Sumatra. However, unlike the Jakarta Prajnaparamita, which exhibits only one textile pattern, the Muarajambi sculpture displays three different and distinct patterns. The kain on Prajnaparamita displays a simple four-petal lotus double roundel motif, overlaid with a sash which displays an intricate lotus scrolling vine motif, neither patterns survives on any regional textiles today. The border of the kain and the ends of the sash show a theme in the form of a floral triangle, possibly representing a pucuk rebung, which is a surviving traditional motif in regional textiles.
The scrolling vine of lotus flowers and floral triangle motifs are also clearly evident in late 13th century Yuan ceramics. Ceramic shards have also been uncovered at the Muarajambi site. Overall the patterns on the dress bear a likeness to Chinese ornament of a similar period.
This paper raises issues concerning these intricate patterns, the weaving techniques required to produce them, and their possible Chinese origins. From such remarkable textiles, either carried in by dignitaries and pilgrims or produced locally, Malayu Jambi has contributed a distinct regional element to textile patterning.
This paper addresses four figurative stone sculptures from East Java, which do exhibit a resurgence of Indian art styles — reflecting both 4th to 6th century Gupta and 8th to 12th-century Pāla styles, The statue of Mañjuśrī Arapacana c.1268 in the State Hermitage Museum, and two statues of Prajñāpāramitā of the late-13th century. One sculpture is in situ at Caṇḍi Singosari and one in the Museum Nasional Indonesia, these along with the figure of a royal couple of the late 13th early-14th century also in the Museum Nasional Indonesia.
This paper reveals how specific features of the arts of the Gupta and Pāla are evident in these four later Javanese sculptures. Furthermore, it addresses the intricate textile patterns carved in bas relief on the kain or cloth of these figurative sculptures, which conversely are not evident in any Indian counterparts. This paper proposes such diverse textiles reflect the position of Java within the international maritime trade network. Certain of these textile patterns, which endure to the present in the sartorial vocabulary of the Javanese, offer us a visual inventory of valued luxury objects long since perished.
This vital sculpture is un-published since J.L.A Brandes in 1909. The fine line drawing of this sculpture in Brandes’ publication is accurate except in one regard. The detail of the patterned textile covering the lower limbs of this bodhisattva- depicted merely as a series of scrawls within circles.
Following a close study of this sculpture during its temporary exhibition in 2016, this paper explores the possible sources of the detailed roundel pattern depicted on the lower garment. It will analyse how this pattern might further inform us of the interconnectedness of insular Southeast Asia in the 13th century.
The last Singasari king Sáng Srí Síwabúda (1268-1292) known as Kṛtanagara, founded his funerary candi near Malang which scholars date to circa 1300. Some scholars claim the unfinished first terrace of this candi is Śaivite while the second reflects a Mahāyāna Buddhist dedication. While Śaivism was generally the religion of the state and the populace at this time, Kṛtanagara is known to have embraced Tantrism.
There exist three Gaṇeśa images, two seated and one standing, and a standing Durgā
Mahiṣāsuramardinī image dated to late 13th century, together with a standing Bhairava image dated to early 14th century. These five monumental sculptures share one common decorative element, they all feature textiles carved in relief depicting skulls or heads. Mostly represented on a base encircled with skulls, some with snakes as body ornaments, and some with skulls resting on the crescent moon in matted hair.
There do not appear to be any sculptures from before the 13th century, or following the death of Kṛtanagara which display such unusual Śaiva-Buddha tantric imagery on their textiles. This paper reveals the extent of these distinct tantric patterns on this group of five sculptures. It concludes as to why these textiles display such motifs and speculate on the possible motivation of their patrons.
Whilst the sculptures clearly reflect the influence of the Indian Sub-Continent, some of the textile patterns may have originated in Java and been transferred to India by travellers carrying goods in both directions. This lecture unfolds many of the complex patterns revealed on these sculptures, including some with Tantric iconography. The lecturer also explores possible places of origin, including Indo-Persia or China, or indeed indigenous to Java.
Illustrated with maps, photos, drawings, and supporting images of similar later textiles, this lecture introduces a new art history publication that presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of these textiles. It argues that these sculptures represent the artistic heritage of the luxury cloths traded across Asia during this era.
This talk will address the complexities of researching and analysing such a variety of sculptures in a broad range of materials and will be well illustrated with photographs and supporting images of similar 20th-century cloths. Using the empirical methodology and with the support of detailed line drawings, the textile patterns are revealed. This talk will explore some of the complex patterned textiles revealed on these sculptures and their possible origins in China and Indo-Persia, placing Java and Sumatra within a cosmopolitan world.
This talk introduces a new art history publication which presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of these patterned textiles and argues that these sculptures represent the artistic heritage of the traded luxury cloths circulating within Asia during this era.
Illustrated with numerous photographs and through detailed line drawings, and with supporting images of similar 20th century cloths, this talk will explore many of the complex patterned textiles revealed on these sculptures, and their possible origins in China and Indo-Persia.
Friday 28 May 2021
7 pm Singapore time
12 Noon UK time
https://www.fom.sg/publicevents.aspx?CID=2
By the seventeenth century, the trading opportunities increased significantly, and diplomatic exchanges were with the island courts of the Indonesian archipelago, specifically, Aceh, Jambi, Palembang and Riau. Also with the south Asian ports of Bengal, Golconda, The Mughal Empire and Persia. The Tai monarchs were the most adventurous rulers in all of Asia, cultivating peaceful diplomatic relations throughout the Maritime region. Their doors were open to commercial trade with foreign merchants. This trade led to two-way trade, and the result of which was Thai products reached across the Maritime region from Japan to the Arabian Peninsula.
This surviving body of sculpture, with their textiles carved in stone in bas relief or cast in metal, varying in size and condition, now stands in archaeological sites across Java, and within museums in Indonesia and worldwide. Situated a few degrees south of the equator, the climate of Java has precluded any textiles from this period surviving in situ to the present. Considering supporting evidence from elsewhere in Asia, this lecture explores the origins of the medieval textiles depicted on these sculptures and the identity of the textile types represented. It also provides some analysis of specific motifs, such as those representing tantric iconography
The equatorial climate of Java has precluded any textiles from this period surviving. This book argues, therefore, that the textiles represented on these sculptures offer a unique insight into the patterned splendour of the textiles in circulation during this period. Hence, this publication will contribute to our knowledge of the textiles in circulation at that time by including the first comprehensive record of this body of sculpture, together with their textile patterns classified into a typology of styles.
Because of the limited number of inscriptions and texts from this period, it has proved necessary to conduct the research for this book by utilizing empirical methods to examine all the sculptures. The discussion of each statue is supported by photographs and original line-drawings of their textile designs. A close analysis of these drawings establishes that during a brief period in the late thirteenth century the textile patterns
carved on the sculptures reached their greatest diversity and complexity.
In considering supporting evidence from Persia, India, Central Asia and China, this book explores the origins of the medieval textile patterns depicted on these sculptures. It also provides some analysis of specific
motifs, such as those representing esoteric iconography. As this research necessitated a detailed analysis of all the sculptures representing textiles,
it also contributes significantly to other related aspects of concurrent apparel and ornamentation. It is my intention that this catalogue of textile patterns be utilized by future students and scholars in the stylistic dating of sculptures from Java between the eighth and fifteenth centuries.
Note that this publication addresses only the repeat patterns presented on free-standing figurative sculpture that evidentially reflect pliant textiles adorning a human form in the round. The publication does not
address the repeat patterns evident on stone temples or architectural features within sculptures, where the rigid patterns may be understood to represent decorative surface elements.
This symposium examines the life stories of certain Hindu and Buddhist objects which originated from the islands of Java, Bali and Sumatra.
Nine international scholars are being brought together to consider certain issues surrounding such objects now to be found in various locations around the world. In particular, the discussions will focus on the biographies of such objects and the issues of their restitution.
This symposium addresses why certain objects were selected to be moved from their find-spots, how such objects passed from one location to another, and who were their major agents in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Finally, it will touch on the various ethical issues surrounding such objects which occupy our deliberations today in the early 21st century.