Title
Ancestral figure
Year/Period
19th-20th centuries
Region
Nias Island, West Sumatra
Material
Dimension
Object size: 26 cm
Accession No.
XXXX-11431
Collection of
Credit Line
Acquired from Perak Musuem, 1909
This wooden figure belongs to a group of three ancestral carvings collected by Captain Giovanni Battista Cerruti (1850–1914), an explorer who spent 30 years travelling around Southeast Asia. Carvings such as this were commonly found in households throughout Nias. Ancestor carvings served as reminders of the deceased and as charms to protect the household. They were containers for ancestral spirits. It was believed that by trapping the last breath of a dying person, the soul could be contained and transferred to the carving.
