Title
Shoulder cloth
Year/Period
c. 1900-1920
Region
Pekalongan, Java
Dimension
Object size: L205.9 x W85.3
Accession No.
1991-00009
Collection of
This batik 'selendang' or shoulder cloth features motifs of hot-air balloons, swans, guitars as well as soldiers.‘Batik tulis’ or hand-drawn batik tradition entered the realm of studio art where specially commissioned pieces were signed by their designers. Dutch or Indo-European women who typically wore ‘sarong kebaya’ and patronised these studios introduced a new consciousness of the value of good quality hand-made batik. These developments centred on north coast Javanese towns such as Pekalongan. Batik was exported from these areas to Sumatra, with designs that included European themes and motifs.
