Borneo Parang Ihlang

[kai]

Hello Joe,

Yes, ants are really fascinating critters as long as they are not biting and/or stinging us. Some feel downright nasty if one is on the receiving end of their weapons...

The clamp ant profile really resembles this krowit motif, indeed. Often the prongs turn inwards though which would fit less. BTW, it is also utilized to close wounds if I recall correctly!


Dayak symbolism is a really vast subject (considering the many ethnic groups and their culture & histories): Some motifs are straightforward (heads) or pretty obvious (aso, leeches). Others, however, can be highly stylized and really tough to identify, especially among a background of confluent motifs; there is a considerable body of published work (of widely differing qualities & scopes) with probably still way more gaps than corroborated knowledge.

We had requests regarding such topics about a year ago and I'd suggest to start separate threads for discussing specific motifs.


Maybe this also helps to bring in more of the specialized Borneo crowd.

Regards,
Kai