Door with lizard motif "ilik"
Indonesia - Sumatra, Toba - Batak
not available anymore
Provenance
Alex Arthur, Brussels, Belgium (1995)Size
M: 89,5 cm x 37 cm
M: 35.2 inch x 14.6 inch
Description
wood, insect caused damage
Door from the facade of a Toba “sopo”. The upper section of this type of building served as a granary for the family rice, while the lower part was used as the men’s meeting ground and as a dormitory for male bachelors.
The lizard motive “ilik” was supposed to cause that the deity “Boraspati ni Tano” granted the harvest in the attic its benevolent protection.
By 1980, old doors decorated with this motif had almost completely disappeared.