Waist Wrapper (Sarung), 1937.5488

Title Waist Wrapper (Sarung)
Culture possibly Pekalongan
Geography Java, Indonesia
Date late 19th–early 20th century
Medium Cotton; balanced plain weave and hand-drawn batik
Dimensions 80 13/16 × 42 3/4 in. (205.3 × 108.6 cm)
Credit Line Hobart and Edward Small Moore Memorial Collection, Gift of Mrs. Ada S. Moore
Inv. No. 1937.5488
View in Collection

The main field of this cloth has a light ground. It depicts ships, trees, flowers, birds, fish, and insects in red, brown, and blue. The head (kepala) has a red‑brown ground with small white flowers and a large, intricate plant in two shades of blue, pink, light brown, and white. There are birds and butterflies on both sides of the plant. A scalloped floral border extends around the bottom of the sarung and up each side of the head. The textile has a on two sides. The is incomplete and was cut to be sewn into a skirt, but it was never finished, and the ends are now open. —RB