Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

A. G. Maisey · 20th May 2015, 11:33 PM

I now have a copy of the article written by Garrett & Bronwen Solyom, and that was used as a reference by Rens Heringa, as quoted by Gustav in post #23 of this thread.

The correct title of the article is "Notes and Observations on Indonesian Textiles", it was published in "Threads of Tradition" by Joseph Fischer, published by the University of California, which was a catalogue intended to accompany exhibitions held at the Lowie Museum of Anthropology, and the University Art Museum in Berkeley.

It is always useful to look at references, as not infrequently an author may either misinterpret a reference, or manipulate its meaning to suit his own agenda.

Gustav has told us that :-

" Alas-Alasan is described as a "cosmic model" in the essay of Rens Heringa in "Five Centuries of Indonesian Textiles" 2010, which is a quite serious publication."

It would seem that Rens Heringa has used this sentence in the Solyom article as his reference:-

"It appears that these elements might be part of a diagram of a conception of the cosmos"

this was written in discussion of the alas-alasan motif as used in certain specific royal cloths.

In fact, the alas-alasan motif is very frequently encountered in Javanese art, and has many forms of expression, not all of which can be thought of in the same way as the interpretation that the Solyoms were discussing in reference to its use on the specific royal cloths.

It is perhaps a little extreme to use a conjecture, such as was made by the Solyoms, as foundation for the interpretation of a motif that has many forms of expression which occur throughout a culture.

A better understanding of the nature of the alas-alasan motif may perhaps be obtained by a reading of the online version of this article:-

http://www.iiste.org/Journals/index....le/19032/19277

note in particular the source of this article.

Paku Buwono
To further clarify what I wrote in post #24 of this thread on the understanding of the title "Paku Buana" (this can also be transliterated as Paku Buwana, Paku Buwono, Paku Buono, Paku Buana).

In 2004 the Karaton Surakarta published an official book dealing with the Karaton, and endorsed by S.I.S.K.S. Paku Buwono XII. In the glossary of this book the term "Paku Buwono" is defined as:-

"name of the Surakarta royal dynasty: Nail/axis of the world".

The confusion that consistently arises in respect of how the word "buwono" must be understood in this context permeates almost all writings that deal with the Karaton Surakarta, even writings by people who should know better.

The fact of the matter is that the only people who truly know how the term should be understood are people who are high in the Karaton hierarchy, or those who have been taught by one of these people.

20th May 2015, 11:33 PM	#30
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,703	I now have a copy of the article written by Garrett & Bronwen Solyom, and that was used as a reference by Rens Heringa, as quoted by Gustav in post #23 of this thread. The correct title of the article is "Notes and Observations on Indonesian Textiles", it was published in "Threads of Tradition" by Joseph Fischer, published by the University of California, which was a catalogue intended to accompany exhibitions held at the Lowie Museum of Anthropology, and the University Art Museum in Berkeley. It is always useful to look at references, as not infrequently an author may either misinterpret a reference, or manipulate its meaning to suit his own agenda. Gustav has told us that :- " Alas-Alasan is described as a "cosmic model" in the essay of Rens Heringa in "Five Centuries of Indonesian Textiles" 2010, which is a quite serious publication." It would seem that Rens Heringa has used this sentence in the Solyom article as his reference:- "It appears that these elements might be part of a diagram of a conception of the cosmos" this was written in discussion of the alas-alasan motif as used in certain specific royal cloths. In fact, the alas-alasan motif is very frequently encountered in Javanese art, and has many forms of expression, not all of which can be thought of in the same way as the interpretation that the Solyoms were discussing in reference to its use on the specific royal cloths. It is perhaps a little extreme to use a conjecture, such as was made by the Solyoms, as foundation for the interpretation of a motif that has many forms of expression which occur throughout a culture. A better understanding of the nature of the alas-alasan motif may perhaps be obtained by a reading of the online version of this article:- http://www.iiste.org/Journals/index....le/19032/19277 note in particular the source of this article. Paku Buwono To further clarify what I wrote in post #24 of this thread on the understanding of the title "Paku Buana" (this can also be transliterated as Paku Buwana, Paku Buwono, Paku Buono, Paku Buana). In 2004 the Karaton Surakarta published an official book dealing with the Karaton, and endorsed by S.I.S.K.S. Paku Buwono XII. In the glossary of this book the term "Paku Buwono" is defined as:- "name of the Surakarta royal dynasty: Nail/axis of the world". The confusion that consistently arises in respect of how the word "buwono" must be understood in this context permeates almost all writings that deal with the Karaton Surakarta, even writings by people who should know better. The fact of the matter is that the only people who truly know how the term should be understood are people who are high in the Karaton hierarchy, or those who have been taught by one of these people.