Floating War World: Dancing with Dayak Shields
While there are many laudable traditions of shield making in Island Southeast Asia, the shields of Borneo are readily recognizable for their craftsmanship, artistry, intricate curvilinear line drawings, and at times eye-popping graphic qualities.
In anticipation of expanding our Borneo Gallery with additions of time-tested artworks from world museum collections, and in honor of a favored shield making tradition, Art of the Ancestors, is pleased to offer our readership fourteen shields of high artistic merit in conjunction with rare 1929 footage of several Siang Dayak men dancing with their swords and shields while displaying their martial moves. The film, Suku Dayak Siang (NIFM Polygon, Haarlem) was shot in situ in Central Borneo where the Siang people still inhabit the surrounding tributaries and in and around the Barito and Babuat Rivers. The Dutch colonial period subtitles state: "Here is a beautiful solo dance," followed by "A second dancer presents an even more dazzling spectacle to enjoy... Nimble like a tiger... Wild, yet masterfully controlled."
Click the image below to watch Dayak Siang War Dance, 1929.
With the exception of two shields, one from central Borneo and the other a Bidayuh shield from Sarawak, all of the shields presented here are based on one form, the classic hexagonal shield with tapered, pointed ends. Michael Heppell notes that Kenyah, Kayan, Ngaju, and Uut Danum shields of this shape were generically referred to as keliau, kelebit, or telawang in Dutch museums. In Iban, the general word for shield is terbai. The use of the hexagonal shaped shield, due to its practical efficiencies, was widespread, adopted and employed by many tribal appellations and their sub-groups. There are many variations to the names and even the uses of these shields.
For a further in-depth look at Dayak shields, we recommend The Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, H.L. Roth: 1896, vol. II, pages 116-138. Protection, Power and Display, Ed. Andrew Tavarelli, 1995, Alpert: pages 19-30. Eyes of the Ancestors, The Arts of Island Southeast Asia, Dallas Museum of Art, Ed. Dr. Reimar Schefold, in collaboration with Steven G. Alpert: 2014/2016, pages 116-171. The latest addition to the literature is found in the remarkable two-volume work, War Art & Ritual by Bill Evans, that was reviewed by AOTA on July 5th, 2019. We're honored to be featuring his work in the future, pages 24-127 from volume one, that contains an essay by Steven G. Alpert and in-depth descriptions of thirty-three Dayak shields by Dr. Michael Heppell.
— Steven G. Alpert, founder of Art of the Ancestors