Tribal calendars from Sumatra, calendari tribali da Sumatra
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Set of 2 Porhalaan Calendars from Sumatra

Sale price€150,00 EUR

SYMBOLS OF FERTILITY AND HAPPINESS

The Porhalaan is a traditional lunisolar calendar of the Batak people in North Sumatra, consisting of 12 months divided into 30 days with an extra month for protection, based on the Batak magic book.
 
Since ancient time’s they’ve been used by farmers to get good crops, decorated with lizards symbolising the earth deity responsible for the fertility of the fields.
The Batak people didn’t use the porhalaan for telling time, but for divination and only the chief ritualist called the Datu could interpret it to determine which day was good to hold a certain ritual. The Datu would often select a day that promised happiness in two months time. Every New Year in the calendar begins on the New Moon in May, when the constellation Orion vanishes in the west and the constellation Scorpius rises in the east.
 
The set comes complete with black metal stands and its story printed out for you inside a beautiful envelope.
Being handmade each piece is slightly different.
 
Dimensions: ca 30 x 40 x 6cm - 28 x 54 x 6cm 

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Set of 2 Porhalaan Calendars from Sumatra - Asian Art from Kirschon
Set of 2 Porhalaan Calendars from Sumatra Sale price€150,00 EUR