Author: Hartono Sumarsono, Helen Ishwara, L.R Supriyapto Yahya, Xenia Moeis, 2013, 240 pgs, (Indonesian), Softcover
Publisher: Kencana Ungu, Jakarta
In this second volume of Hartono Sumarsono’s batik collection, the author invites readers to engage in a meticulous examination of the intricate motifs adorning both the head and body of North Coastal batiks. Particular attention is devoted to the papan—the vertical board-like element extending from top to bottom of the sarong—as well as the ornamental borders framing each textile. Beyond aesthetic analysis, the volume also addresses the fluctuations within the batik industry, highlighting its cyclical prosperity and decline. The author underscores the emergence of unconventional patterns in distinctive pieces and situates batik within a broader cultural framework as a medium of narrative expression. These narratives range from traditional wayang epics to modern popular culture, including the 1930s comic-strip hero “Flash Gordon” and Charles Perrault fairy-tale figure “Cinderella”. Batik is further explored as a visual archive, capable of recording and transmitting historical events through its symbolic language.
Author: Hartono Sumarsono et al, 2013. 239 pg. (Indonesian)
Publisher: Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia, Jakarta
"Benang Raja," which translates to "King's Yarn," explores the beauty of Javanese North Coastal Batik while addressing issues related to copying and repetition in production. It focuses specifically on batiks from Lasem and the evolving techniques that respond to changing demands. The author discusses "pakem," the fundamental elements of batik design, and highlights how Pekalongan batikers have embraced creativity to produce extraordinary and beautiful works that break from traditional rules.
Author: Nyoman Wijaya, 2018. 500pgs. (English). Softcover.
Publisher: Pustaka Larasan, Denpasar, Bali
This volume constitutes an exceptional biographical study authored by Balinese historian Nyoman Wijaya. It examines the multifaceted life of Dr. Anak Agung Made Djelantik, a distinguished figure who seamlessly bridged the domains of royal heritage, medical science, and cultural preservation. The biography traces Djelantik’s lineage as a scion of Balinese royalty, yet his trajectory diverged from the expected path of sheltered privilege, being instead shaped by geopolitical upheaval. A particularly compelling section recounts his 1948 exile to Buru Island, imposed by the Dutch colonial administration due to his perceived political association with the national hero I Gusti Ngurah Rai. The narrative conveys the emotional gravity of this period, during which his young daughter Bulantrisna Djelantik—later celebrated as a master of Balinese dance—accompanied him. Wijaya documents with acuity Djelantik’s transformation from royal descendant to committed servant of global public health. The text charts his extensive career as a malaria specialist for the World Health Organization (WHO), detailing deployments to volatile and challenging environments such as Somalia and Afghanistan. This international perspective reframes Djelantik not merely as a local figure but as a humanitarian of global stature. Upon returning to Bali, his intellectual focus shifted toward performing arts and philosophy, catalyzed by his daughter’s training as a Legong dancer in Peliatan, Ubud. The biography highlights his profound intellectual exchanges with legendary Balinese dance masters including Biang Sengong, I Kakul, I Maria, and Wayan Lotring. This immersion ultimately led him into academia, where he taught aesthetics and played a pivotal role in safeguarding Balinese cultural heritage. Written by a professional historian, the work avoids the pitfalls of hagiography. It relies on rigorous historical contextualization, treating Djelantik’s life as a prism through which to apprehend twentieth‑century Balinese and Indonesian transformations. The title Bening Embun (“Clear Dew”) aptly mirrors the biography’s tone—lucid, refreshing, and deeply reflective. Wijaya succeeds in balancing objective historical analysis with the subjective human dimensions of exile, duty, and artistic passion. The book is carefully structured, dividing a complex, multi‑decade life into distinct thematic epochs: royal lineage, political exile, global health service, and cultural renaissance. Bening Embun: The Journey of A.A. Made Djelantik transcends the genre of biography, emerging as a vital historical document on modern Balinese identity. It is highly recommended for anthropologists, medical historians, art historians, and cultural scholars seeking to understand how a single life can harmonize the rigor of scientific inquiry with the fluid beauty of traditional art.
Author: V.E. Korn, 2013. 169pgs. (Indonesian). Softcover
Publisher: Udayana University Press, Bali
This volume, translated and published by Udayana University Press, stands as a foundational monograph derived from the pioneering fieldwork of Dutch legal scholar and colonial administrator Dr. Victor Emanuel Korn. It offers a penetrating analysis of adoption, lineage, and inheritance within Balinese customary law (hukum adat) during the Netherlands Indies administration. At the heart of Korn’s study lies the ritual necessity of securing a male heir (purusa) to sustain ancestral obligations (dharma). In Bali’s patrilineal system, the absence of a male successor threatened not only material continuity but also the metaphysical equilibrium of the household. Adoption, therefore, was never a mere juridical transaction; it was a sacred act of ritual re-inscription, binding the adopted child into the spiritual economy of the lineage. Korn delineates several adaptive mechanisms within hukum adat: Sentana Perasan: enacted through the solemn rite of Meras Sentana, this adoption ritual symbolically re-roots a male child—often from the paternal extended family—into a new household. The ceremony sanctifies the transfer, ensuring that the child inherits not only property but also the ancestral swadharma. Sentana Rajeg: the ritual elevation of a daughter to purusa status, a profound inversion of normative gender roles. Through sacred sanction, she becomes the bearer of lineage continuity, embodying both juridical authority and ritual responsibility. Nyentana/Nyeburin Marriages: matrimonial arrangements in which a husband ritually enters the wife’s family, assuming pradana status. Their children perpetuate the maternal line, ensuring that ancestral rites remain unbroken. These practices reveal adoption as a ritualized negotiation with the divine order, where kinship is consecrated through ceremonial acts. A sentana inherits rice fields, but more critically, he or she inherits the obligation to perform pitra puja—ritual offerings to ancestors that safeguard cosmic balance. Adoption thus functions as a liturgical mechanism, preserving the sanctity of lineage and the continuity of ancestral worship. Korn’s ethnographic lens captures these traditions at a pivotal moment when colonial courts (kerta) sought to codify unwritten customs. His work remains invaluable for legal anthropologists, though readers must remain aware of its early twentieth-century colonial framing, which privileges patriarchal norms and omits later reforms such as the landmark 2010 rulings of the Main Customary Council of Bali (Majelis Utama Desa Pakraman) granting daughters partial inheritance rights. This monograph is indispensable for scholars of law, anthropology, and religion. It demonstrates that adoption in Bali is not reducible to legal formality but is a ritual covenant, binding descendants to both ancestral spirits and communal identity. It remains an irreplaceable reference for understanding how family continuity in Balinese culture is sustained through the interweaving of law, ritual, and devotion.
Author: Suwati Kartiwa, 1985. 105pgs. (Indonesian). Softcover.
Publisher: Proyek Pengembangan Museum Nasional, tahun 1985-1986, Jakarta
This volume, produced under the auspices of the National Museum’s developmental initiatives, was authored by Ms. Suwati Kartiwa, who served as curator and subsequently Director of the institution. It stands as a seminal contribution to Indonesian textile studies, offering not merely descriptive cataloguing but a critical ethnographic lens through which the nation’s diverse sartorial traditions are examined. Kartiwa’s text functions as both guide and scholarly resource. It systematically delineates the principal textile forms, the raw materials integral to traditional clothing, and the social functions of costume across a wide spectrum of ethnic communities in the archipelago. The author’s dual role as curator and later director imbues the work with institutional authority, while her ethnographic sensitivity ensures that the textiles are not reduced to aesthetic objects but are situated within lived cultural contexts. The volume’s strength lies in its comprehensive documentation of the National Museum’s textile ethnographic collection. Kartiwa moves beyond inventory to interrogate the relationship between geography and material culture: the ecological availability of fibers, the technological adaptations of weaving, and the symbolic meanings encoded in chromatic choices and costume forms. This analytical approach underscores the interdependence of environment, economy, and ritual practice in shaping textile traditions. Equally compelling is the exploration of textiles as mediators of social and spiritual life. The book illuminates how cloth functions in quotidian settings, ceremonial occasions, and religious observances, thereby revealing the fabric as a locus of identity and cosmology. Symbolism—whether expressed through color, fiber, or stylistic variation—is interpreted with ethnographic nuance, situating costume as a vehicle of cultural narrative and collective memory. A notable feature of the volume is its rich visual apparatus. The inclusion of illustrations and detailed drawings of material culture—depicting weaving techniques, costume forms, and regional variations—enhances the scholarly utility of the text. These visual representations not only complement the descriptive passages but also serve as interpretive tools, allowing readers to apprehend the tactile and aesthetic dimensions of textile heritage. In this way, the book bridges textual analysis with visual ethnography, reinforcing its value as both academic reference and museum catalogue. From a scholarly perspective, the volume’s contribution is twofold: it enriches museological practice by advancing systematic inventory and contextualization, and it deepens ethnographic discourse by foregrounding textiles as dynamic cultural texts. While primarily descriptive, its interpretive passages and visual documentation invite further comparative research across Southeast Asia, positioning Indonesian textile heritage within broader regional and global conversations on material culture. In sum, Kartiwa’s volume is indispensable for scholars of ethnography, museology, and textile history. It bridges curatorial documentation with cultural analysis, offering a resource that is at once archival, interpretive, and visually instructive, thereby affirming the National Museum’s role as custodian of Indonesia’s rich sartorial heritage.
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