Waterfowl, birds and butterflies amidst flowering plants embellish the blue badan or ‘body’ of the sarong. A variety of floral designs, decorative motifs and birds are also found enclosed in diagonal bands and triangles on the broad vertical panel (or kepala).This batik is part of a large group donated to the museum by the descendants of three generations of female batik makers from Pekalongan. According to the family, it was made by the great grandmother of the donors, Nyonya Oeij Soen King, the first of the three generations. Her batiks were made in a style that was popular throughout most of the nineteenth century, characterised by a tumpal (saw-tooth pattern) placed at the “head” of a kain panjang (long cloth) or sarong. They are typically embellished with motifs from a sophisticated design repertoire that evolved in Java over several centuries. Although they have distinctly local characteristics, they combine influences from indigenous, Indian, Chinese, and Islamic art. The use of of natural red and blue dyes on a cream ground is also characteristic of batiks made during this period, before chemical dyes were introduced to the industry in the late 19th century. Nyonya Oeij Soen King was probably active until the 1920s, after which the business was taken over by her daughter-in-law, Nyonya Oeij Kok Sing.
