Stamps Issue Series
Stamps Issue Series
Traditional Textile of Indonesia
30 March 2011
Buy now for US $ 15
(1 Special Pack, 2 Souvenir Sheet, 1 Exhibition Cover ) exclude shipping charges
Special Edition of philatelic object pf "Indonesia 2012" is published to welcome the World Stamp Championship and Exhibition in Jakarta 2012. This issue is the second series taken from the series of "Traditional Textile of Indonesia".
In this special edition, design object ever issued in the series of : Ulos hand Woven-North Sumatera, Sasirangan Hand Woven-South Kalimantan, Iban Hand Woven-East Kalimantan, Toraja hand Woven-South Sulawesi and Sumba Hand Woven-East Nusa Tenggara.
Indonesia is the largest archipelago country in the world with more than 17.500 large and small islands scattered along the 4800 km between Asia and Australia. Therefore, Indonesia has the largest diversity of art and culture compared to any part of this world. Every ethnic groups in Indonesia have its own characteristics in their traditional clothing which, of course, they are equipped with traditional unique cloth and being a wonderful cultural heritage.
kain Tenun (Woven cloth) are made with developed warp ikat technique and it is being a characteristic of population in Nusa Tenggara, Kalimantan, Sulawesi regions and also in some areas in Sumatera; Kain Songket (Songket cloth) has been growing in most areas of Sumatera, Kain Batik (Batik Cloth) has been attached to the identity of the Javanese; The sulam and embroidery art techniques are widely used in West Sumatra, that eventually spread to other parts of Indonesia, traditional cloth treasure is still thrive in Indonesia until the present day.
Indonesian traditional cloth has a high cultural value, especially from the point of aesthetics, symbolic meaning and has the philosophy that underlies its construction. The diversity and uniqueness of decorative woven cloth clearly reflected in the elements associated with the veneration of ancestors and the natural grandeur. Each region has distinctive features in the ornamental range associated with socio-cultural function of the area. Within each family or religious rituals, a piece of woven fabric is almost always a very important part.
The history of batik in Indonesia began to develop in the sultanate of Mataram XVIII, the in the sultanate of Yogyakarta ans Surakarta era. Batik initially made in the palace to meet the demand for the king and his family and his followers clothing. As many of the king's courtiers lived outside the palace, the art of batik was brought by them out of the palace and they produced it in their own palaces. Then, batik that used to be wear only by the royal family, developed into a popular folk clothes. For the Javanese, a piece of batik is not just a piece of cloth for clothing, but it used in some level of life of the royal family members started from a baby was born until the moment they left this world, also in dance, drama and fashion arts.
Compared to other traditional types of cloth, batik is the most widely received cultural influence from China especially in ornamnet pattern. Chinese-style decorative patterns such as dragon, phoenix, gold kepeng, butterflies, bats, peony flower or a clump of bamboo liked the most. The ornament pattern are used mostly in the batik from the coastal area that are along the northern coast of Java island. Lots of Chinese descent who are involved in this industry and become a famousbatik businessman.
