Tana Toraja tribal offerring tray
$150
Description
Tana Toraja tribal offerring tray, early 1900's, wood with heavy patina, and a carved anthropomorphic handle.
Carved from a single piece of jackfruit wood in accordance with Toraja customary law, this ritual offering bowl was used in ancestral ceremonies. The shallow circular basin has a thicker area that was heavily used for cutting and the bowl is fitted with a small integral zoomorphic handle that resembles a turtle or a mythological guardian associated with and ancestral passage.
Such vessels were traditionally used to present offerings to ancestral spirits during celebrations, particularly at cliff-side burial sites (liang batu). The bowl has a wonderful wabi sabi patina, typical of long-term use and exposure.
14” diameter x 2.5” height