Resource Spotlight | “Patterned Splendour: Textiles Presented on Javanese Metal and Stone Sculpture from the Eighth to the Fifteenth Century” by Lesley S Pullen

Statue of Mañjuśrī Arapacana,1265 from Caṇḍi Jago, in the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg.

PATTERNED SPLENDOUR

Textiles Presented on Javanese Metal and Stone Sculpture from the Eighth to the Fifteenth Century

by Lesley S Pullen

Drawings by Yiran Huang
© Lesley S Pullen

Published by ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.

Introduction
Numerous free-standing figurative sculptures found in Java between the eighth and the fifteenth-century feature dress displaying detailed textile patterns. This surviving body of sculpture, carved in stone and cast in metal, varying in both size and condition, remains in archaeological sites and museums in Indonesia and worldwide. The equatorial climate of Java has precluded any textiles surviving from this period. This book argues that the textiles represented on these sculptures offer a unique insight into the patterned splendour of the textiles in circulation during this time; it also includes the first comprehensive record of this body of sculpture and their textile patterns classified into a typology of styles as seen in the Comparative Chart of Line Drawings, examples in Fig. 3a, 4a & 6a.
Because of the limited number of inscriptions and texts from this period, it has proved necessary to research this book by utilizing empirical methods to examine all the sculpture accompanied by a description of each statue supported by photographs and original line drawings of their textile designs. In considering supporting evidence from Persia, India, Central Asia and China, this book explores the origins of the medieval textile patterns depicted on these sculptures. It also provides some analysis of specific motifs, such as those representing esoteric iconography. This research necessitated a detailed analysis of all the sculptures representing textiles; it also contributes significantly to other related aspects of contemporary apparel and ornamentation. I intend this catalogue of textile patterns to be employed by future students and scholars in the stylistic dating of sculptures from Java during this period.
This publication addresses only the patterns presented on the free-standing figurative sculpture that evidentially reflect pliant textiles adorning a human form in the round. The publication does not address the repeat patterns evident on stone temples or architectural features within sculptures, where the rigid patterns may be understood to represent decorative surface elements. Included are seventy-three stone and metal sculptures originating from Java and Sumatra.
— Lesley S Pullen

Hover over the following images for comprehensive attributions provided by the author.

Fig. 2. Map of Trade Routes 8th - 15th century © Lesley S. Pullen

Fig. 3a. Central and Early East Java, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen — Fig. 3a. Central and Early East Java, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings
Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen

Fig. 3b. Agastya, 8th - 9th Century, Caṇḍi Ijo, Gupola Site, Jogjakarta. 3m, stone. Pullen photo. Drawing of the textile pattern reflected in Fig. 3a, no. 39.The attributes of Agastya are identifiable by his goatee, stout belly, and the trident carved against the damaged back slab on his right side; his two arms are missing, and the left would hold the water pot.  The seléndang shown folded across the body, with a second sash bent over on the front of his thighs, a typical Central Javanese feature. The long kain fabric covered in large rosettes carved as a repeated pattern across the fabric finishes at the ankles, represented by a wavy line and a small border. — Fig. 3b. Agastya, 8th - 9th Century, Caṇḍi Ijo, Gupola Site, Jogjakarta. 3m, stone. Pullen photo. Drawing of the textile pattern reflected in Fig. 3a, no. 39.
The attributes of Agastya are identifiable by his goatee, stout belly, and the trident carved against the damaged back slab on his right side; his two arms are missing, and the left would hold the water pot. The *seléndang* shown folded across the body, with a second sash bent over on the front of his thighs, a typical Central Javanese feature. The long kain fabric covered in large rosettes carved as a repeated pattern across the fabric finishes at the ankles, represented by a wavy line and a small border.

Fig. 4a. Central and Early East Java, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen — Fig. 4a. Central and Early East Java, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings
Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen

Fig. 4b. Śiva, 8th–9th century, origin unknown. Gift of Nancy Wiener, 2004. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 27.9 cm, gilt bronze. Inv. no. 2004.556. The drawing of the textile pattern reflected in Fig. 4a, no. 55. The standing four-armed figure of Śiva has been gilded and is now considerably worn. The statue remains in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Śiva is adorned with royal ornaments, evident in the significant drop-shaped Indian-style earrings and large neck ornament. He wears the seléndang across his torso, over which lies a broad upavīta cast in the guise of a snake, its head rearing over his left shoulder. His many girdles and sashes are clearly defined, and they hold up a long kain finishing at his ankles. Over his hips is the tiger skin of Śiva, with its head on his right thigh. The pattern on the kain consists of a stylized four-petal lotus flower within large circles with double outer bands. — Fig. 4b. Śiva, 8th–9th century, origin unknown. Gift of Nancy Wiener, 2004. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 27.9 cm, gilt bronze. Inv. no. 2004.556. The drawing of the textile pattern reflected in Fig. 4a, no. 55.
The standing four-armed figure of Śiva has been gilded and is now considerably worn. The statue remains in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Śiva is adorned with royal ornaments, evident in the significant drop-shaped Indian-style earrings and large neck ornament. He wears the *seléndang* across his torso, over which lies a broad *upavīta* cast in the guise of a snake, its head rearing over his left shoulder. His many girdles and sashes are clearly defined, and they hold up a long kain finishing at his ankles. Over his hips is the tiger skin of Śiva, with its head on his right thigh. The pattern on the *kain* consists of a stylized four-petal lotus flower within large circles with double outer bands.

Fig. 5a. A short-sleeved jacket of woven silk and metal thread lined with block printed cotton and glazed roller printed cotton. The jacket joined at the shoulders, with a diamond shape opening underneath the arms, bound with black cotton fabric. Th… — Fig. 5a. A short-sleeved jacket of woven silk and metal thread lined with block printed cotton and glazed roller printed cotton. The jacket joined at the shoulders, with a diamond shape opening underneath the arms, bound with black cotton fabric. There is no sign of fastenings and no cross-over at the front. c. 1800 Persian, V&A Inv. No. 287-1884

Fig. 5b. Detail of an Ewer with incised floral lozenges and clouds, Tang Dynasty, China, c. 830’s, glazed stoneware. Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore, Inv. No. 2005.1.00900-1/2 to 2/2.The green glazed ewer is decorated with a lozenge with flowers at the corners, a pattern developed in the Abbasid Empire (Iran and Iraq). Chinese artists adopted the pattern to appeal to Middle East clients. The lozenge appears on various shipwreck objects; the shared design is emblematic of the historical relationship between China and the Indo-Persian world, also appears on the jacket in figure 5c. — Fig. 5b. Detail of an Ewer with incised floral lozenges and clouds, Tang Dynasty, China, c. 830’s, glazed stoneware. Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore, Inv. No. 2005.1.00900-1/2 to 2/2.
The green glazed ewer is decorated with a lozenge with flowers at the corners, a pattern developed in the Abbasid Empire (Iran and Iraq). Chinese artists adopted the pattern to appeal to Middle East clients. The lozenge appears on various shipwreck objects; the shared design is emblematic of the historical relationship between China and the Indo-Persian world, also appears on the jacket in figure 5c.

Fig. 5c. Arcā Leluhur 1, 11th–13th century, Bumiayu Temple 1. Site Museum Desa Bumiayu, Kecamatan Tanah Abang, South Sumatra. 62 cm, tuff white volcanic stone. Pullen photo.This statue remains in a small site museum at Caṇḍi Bumiayu; she wears stitc… — Fig. 5c. Arcā Leluhur 1, 11th–13th century, Bumiayu Temple 1. Site Museum Desa Bumiayu, Kecamatan Tanah Abang, South Sumatra. 62 cm, tuff white volcanic stone. Pullen photo.
This statue remains in a small site museum at Caṇḍi Bumiayu; she wears stitched garments of a Javanese or Malay type of dress with a long-sleeved jacket finishes at the hips, worn over a *kain* to the ankles the jacket pattern appears to represent a Persian-inspired motif as seen in figure 5a. The jacket is a *baju* or *kebaya;* the word *baju* was derived initially from the Persian word *bad ͡ ȝu* and subsequently adopted into the Malay language. On the other hand, the term *kebaya* probably derived from the Arabic word *kaba* or *abaya;* however, *kebaya* originates from the Arabic *habaya*, meaning a long tunic that is open down the front, similar perhaps to figure 5a. In today’s Malay language, an upper-body garment, whether with or without sleeves, is generally termed a *baju*, a word also used for a blouse, robe, tunic or coat. The term *baju* appears in Javanese texts from the early eleventh century and Malay manuscripts from the late fourteenth century.

Fig. 6a. Kediri and Singhasāri, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen — Fig. 6a. Kediri and Singhasāri, Comparative Chart of Line Drawings
Drawings by Yiran Huang © Lesley S Pullen

Fig. 6b. Gaṇeśa (detail of right leg) c.1292, Caṇḍi Singosari, Tower Temple, Caṇḍi A, Malang, East Java. Volkenkunde, Leiden. Collection Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen. Inv. no. RV 1403-1681. 1.54m, andesite stone. Drawing of the textile patter… — Fig. 6b. Gaṇeśa (detail of right leg) c.1292, Caṇḍi Singosari, Tower Temple, Caṇḍi A, Malang, East Java. Volkenkunde, Leiden. Collection Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen. Inv. no. RV 1403-1681. 1.54m, andesite stone. Drawing of the textile pattern reflected in Fig. 6a and No. 112 & 113.
Gaṇeśa displays tantric iconography in the form of the skull cup or *kāpala* held in both hands; his ornaments represent skulls in both ears and headdress, and he is seated on a row of skulls. He wears garments arranged in three parts; the sleeveless jacket covers the upper body and finishes at the stomach band. The jacket is carved on a horizontal axis and depicts a large square design with a flower with four pointed petals surrounded by a circular repeat pattern set within a square motif. The border ornamented with a pattern of lappets or downwards lotus petals, the stylistic grammar of the decoration would suggest an embroidered or a brocade fabric such as a *songket* (supplementary weft weaving). On closer inspection, the lower garment delineated as a form of trousers finished at the ankles. No folds of the cloth are apparent on the lotus cushion, which indicates the wearing of trousers. This cloth carved with a design of skulls set on a diagonal axis; it appears with a forward-facing head alternating with a pattern of a “one-eyed *kāla*-head [s]. A short cloth is on the upper thighs, also carved with a design of confronting stylized *kāla* heads.

Fig. 7a. Kain songket seléndang, 2001 by PT Studio Songket Palantaloom. Bukittinggi, Sumatra, 194 x 55 cm. Private collection. In 2001, a weaving studio in Sumatra wove a songket textile pattern based on the sash design of the Mahākāla. The reproduced design of a songket suggests that this type of weaving was entirely possible in the fourteenth century, and it highlights the longevity of weaving using the songket technique by the ancestors of the present-day Minangkabau in West Sumatra. The origins of songket were unknown before the fifteenth century. The technique of weaving with gold threads originated from Muslims in North India. This knowledge came through the old trading ports of Palembang and the commerce in cloth and gold threads. However, with details gained from the Zhufanzhi, we know that the Chinese were trading silks and brocades from at least the twelfth or thirteenth century and probably earlier. — Fig. 7a. *Kain songket seléndang*, 2001 by PT Studio Songket Palantaloom. Bukittinggi, Sumatra, 194 x 55 cm. Private collection. In 2001, a weaving studio in Sumatra wove a *songket* textile pattern based on the sash design of the Mahākāla.
The reproduced design of a *songket* suggests that this type of weaving was entirely possible in the fourteenth century, and it highlights the longevity of weaving using the *songket* technique by the ancestors of the present-day Minangkabau in West Sumatra. The origins of *songket* were unknown before the fifteenth century. The technique of weaving with gold threads originated from Muslims in North India. This knowledge came through the old trading ports of Palembang and the commerce in cloth and gold threads. However, with details gained from the Zhufanzhi, we know that the Chinese were trading silks and brocades from at least the twelfth or thirteenth century and probably earlier.

Fig. 7b. Mahākāla, (detail of right side), attributed to Ādityavarman, 14th century, Padang Roco, Sungai Langsat, West Sumatra. Museum Nasional Indonesia. 4.14 m, sandstone. Inv. No. 6470. Pullen photo. Mahākāla wears a short kain portrayed falling to the mid-thighs. It appears pulled up in the centre in the style of a South Indian dhotī finished with a sizeable kāla-head clasp. The pattern on the kain made up of a series of diamond shapes carved on the vertical axis, and each diamond represents a skull motif resting on a sickle moon known as candrakapāla. Depicted around the central theme is a vegetal motif carved to create a rough outline for each diamond. Around the lower edge of the kain is a defined border pattern of three rows of circles, with a larger one in the centre (which appears unfinished). The detailed patterning of the sash differs from the kain. Both carved within a triangle on the vertical axis—one of the small triangles filled with four trefoil motifs, around which are placed four scallop-shaped patterns. The alternating triangular pattern consists of the theme of an elongated flower and trefoil. — Fig. 7b. Mahākāla, (detail of right side), attributed to Ādityavarman, 14th century, Padang Roco, Sungai Langsat, West Sumatra. Museum Nasional Indonesia. 4.14 m, sandstone. Inv. No. 6470. Pullen photo.
Mahākāla wears a short *kain* portrayed falling to the mid-thighs. It appears pulled up in the centre in the style of a South Indian *dhotī* finished with a sizeable kāla-head clasp. The pattern on the *kain* made up of a series of diamond shapes carved on the vertical axis, and each diamond represents a skull motif resting on a sickle moon known as *candrakapāla*. Depicted around the central theme is a vegetal motif carved to create a rough outline for each diamond. Around the lower edge of the *kain* is a defined border pattern of three rows of circles, with a larger one in the centre (which appears unfinished). The detailed patterning of the sash differs from the *kain*. Both carved within a triangle on the vertical axis—one of the small triangles filled with four trefoil motifs, around which are placed four scallop-shaped patterns. The alternating triangular pattern consists of the theme of an elongated flower and trefoil.

Fig. 8a. Detail of a batik lokcan kemben, silk, early 20th century. Private collection. — Fig. 8a. Detail of a batik *lokcan kemben*, silk, early 20th century. Private collection.

Fig. 8b. Harihara Ardhanari, deification image of a god, possibly King Kṛtanāgara, early 14th century, Majapahit. The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. Acquired in 1945 from Museum für Völkerkunde, Berlin, 1.45m, andesite stone. Inv. no. BD-543… — Fig. 8b. Harihara Ardhanari, deification image of a god, possibly King Kṛtanāgara, early 14th century, Majapahit. The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. Acquired in 1945 from Museum für Völkerkunde, Berlin, 1.45m, andesite stone. Inv. no. BD-543.
The statue of Harihara wears two kain, the lower cloth carved with a border of small squares, whilst the borders of the upper two *kain* carved with a version of the *banji* or swastika pattern, a motif that was also popular in Thai, Lao and Balinese textiles. The *banji* motif often described as being derived from China; however, also interpreted as a “meander or cloud border” used to indicate the edge of a garment, regarded by the Chinese as “the motif of ten thousand”. The *banji* pattern regularly used today as a border pattern on batik textiles such as the silk *lokcan* in figure 8a. The *banji* motif may well have been imported during the Hindu-Buddhist period from India or, as suggested, from China.

Fig. 9a. Kain songket, Tengku Islamail, Tanjog Sabtu, Sarawak, East Malaysia, 2010, Pullen Photo. — Fig. 9a. *Kain songket,* Tengku Islamail, Tanjog Sabtu, Sarawak, East Malaysia, 2010, Pullen Photo.

Fig. 9b. Durgā Mahiṣāsuramardinī, detail of the kain on the lower right leg, c.1292, Caṇḍi Singosari, Tower temple, Malang, East Java. This photo shows the lower body garment held up with a plain cloth belt, the ends of which drape onto the th… — Fig. 9b. Durgā Mahiṣāsuramardinī, detail of the kain on the lower right leg, c.1292, Caṇḍi Singosari, Tower temple, Malang, East Java.
This photo shows the lower body garment held up with a plain cloth belt, the ends of which drape onto the thighs with elaborately carved tassels suggestive of goldwork decoration. The costume is completed with two sashes draped over the legs carved with a *bunga bintang* or star motif, a pattern that continues today in Malay *songket* designs. The precision of stone carved textiles suggests the designs are unlikely to have been an invention of the sculptor’s imagination and are more likely to have replicated a cloth that existed at the time, such as the example in figure 9a. The delineation of stars and rosettes set within chains often reflected in *songket* textiles seen in the Malay textile tradition of today.

Lesley S Pullen

Lesley Pullen is an art historian with a focus on medieval South and Southeast Asian material cultures. She completed at SOAS University of London a Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art in 1998, a Taught Masters in 2008, and a Doctorate in 2017 with a thesis titled “Representation of Textiles on Classical Javanese Sculpture”. Her thesis addressed the repeat patterns evident on specific Hindu-Buddhist figurative sculptures from Java, Indonesia, in the ninth to fourteenth centuries. Following her doctorate, Lesley was appointed a SOAS Post-Doctoral Research Associate. Her teaching record at SOAS includes tutoring the Southeast Asian Art module of the Postgraduate Diploma program from 2009 to 2015.

Lesley is also the Southeast Asian Art module tutor for the Victoria & Albert Museum Arts of Asia year course since 2015. She has published articles reflecting her doctoral research in several peer-reviewed journals, including Prajñāpāramitā in thirteenth century Java and Sumatra: two sculptures disconnected by textile designs and Worn Textiles of Singhasāri.

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