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Shoulder cloth (tengkuluk) or waist sash (pelung)
Shoulder cloth (tengkuluk) or waist sash (pelung)

Shoulder cloth (tengkuluk) or waist sash (pelung)

Place of OriginPasemah, Sumatra, Indonesia
Date1900-1930
MaterialsSilk, metal-wrapped threads, and dyes
DimensionsH. 85 in x D. 16 in, H. 215.9 cm x 40.6 cm
Credit LineGift of Walter Jared Frost and David Salman
Object number2017.85
ClassificationsTextiles
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The weavers of Sumatra are famous for producing shimmering textiles woven with supplementary gold and silver threads. Textiles with valuable metallic thread would have been a marker of status and part of ceremonial dress for the wealthy. The Minang region of western Sumatra is the most well known for this technique, but further south, in Pasemah and Bengkulu, weavers also used gold and silver to adorn their cloth. These textiles are no longer made and have been much less studied.

On this textile, dozens of bands with different geometric patterns alternate across the width of an almost black, indigo base. A fringe of silk floss was added after the textile was woven.