Heritage Snippets of Sarawak
By Lim Tze Tshen
THE use of hard animal parts such as bones and teeth to adorn cultural items with special significance seems to have a long history in Borneo.
In a pioneering paper written jointly by Tom Harrisson and Lord Medway in 1962 (A first classification of prehistoric bone and tooth artifacts; Sarawak Museum Journal), both authors recognised four categories of prehistoric artifacts manufactured from animal teeth (pig tusk tools, tooth pendants, double-bored and single-bored tooth plugs) among the materials excavated from a number of archaeological sites in the Niah Great Cave.
With the exception of the tools made of pig tusks, these archaeological artifacts would seem to have formed part of cultural objects of aesthetic or ritual value to the prehistoric communities living in and near Niah. Modern analogues can be seen in living traditions, yet the exact cultural meanings of these prehistoric artifacts are, of course, largely inscrutable to us, since most of the original intentions must have been lost, faded, or altered in one way or another through the long passage of time. Similar prehistoric artifacts made of animal teeth excavated from the Painted Cave (also known as Gua Kain Hitam) in Niah can be seen in the permanent exhibition at Level 4 ‘Time Changes’ of the Borneo Cultures Museum inside the display cases showing grave goods found in association with ancient human burials (see Figure 1).
The animal parts used in these prehistoric artifacts all come from mammals including wild boar, barking deer, clouded leopard, sun bear, binturong, and other small carnivores. All of the animal parts bear unmistakable signs of human manufacture and usage, which clearly distinguish them from other animal remains in the prehistoric kitchen refuse.
The fangs (also known as canine teeth) of carnivores are obviously the most preferred type of tooth kept and chosen as crucial cultural objects by prehistoric Borneans since it was found that they are better represented than other tooth types among the artifacts manufactured from teeth. But, most revealing is that ‘imitators’ of fang fashioned from other tooth types or bones had also been detected among the archaeological remains. This fact alone speaks volumes that fangs are very much a coveted treasure among the prehistoric people.
Exquisite examples of traditional objects that incorporated animal teeth, including, for example, necklaces and ear ornaments, which were kept by more recent Bornean communities can be found in some of the black-and-white photographs reproduced in a book that Charles Hose published in 1926, Natural Man – A Record from Borneo. A more impressive and unique example was reported by Adelheid Munan-Oettli in 1981 (Bead necklace 1598 in the Sarawak Museum collection; Sarawak Museum Journal) that involves an attractive necklace with a rhinoceros molar tooth, a sun bear fang and other animal teeth strung among colourful beads. This particular necklace is such a splendid piece of art that piques so much of my scientific curiosity that I decided to learn more about the cultural use of animal teeth in traditional Bornean customs.
In some cases, animal products were incorporated into the manufacture of traditional items not so much because of their aesthetic value but perhaps owing largely to a deep cultural significance that a particular community identified with the animal remains, most notably the teeth or jaw parts with teeth on them. The unusual size and shape of the canine teeth of certain large animals—for example clouded leopard, leopard, tiger, and wild boar—may be the main cause for them to have assumed an important role in various traditional beliefs and practices.
In fact, Charles Hose mentioned in his book cited above how charms that included a tiger tooth and a pig tusk were used by the Klemantan communities to induce crocodiles to leave a lake so that local people will be free from any unfortunate attacks from them. Other excellent cultural examples of extraordinary power or attributes associated with animal teeth were provided by the anthropologist Roger Peranio in his 1959 Sarawak Museum Journal article ‘Animal teeth and oath-taking among the Bisaya’. Two photographs he reproduced in the article show two strings of animal fangs traditionally used in oath-taking practices among the Bisaya people of Limbang area in the settlement and adjudication of major disputes. The fangs involved were from sun bear, tiger, and possibly other related large wild cat species.
Tigers, to be sure, are no longer to be found in modern-day Borneo, but these awe-inspiring large predators used to be part of the prehistoric fauna of the island as indicated by the evidence from Niah Great Cave (https://dayakdaily.com/extinct-megafauna-from-niah-sarawak/). Roger Peranio, however, did not discuss further in his article whether the Bisaya tiger fangs, said to be inherited from previous generations, were past traded items from outside of the island, or they may have been sourced locally in Borneo.
If this latter assumption is true, then it means that the fangs may belong to some of the last individual tigers that have survived in Borneo (readers who are particularly into this subject would find the following articles a wealth of fascinating information—The unsolved mystery: evidence of tiger, Panthera tigris (L.) in Borneo by Rifky Edo Herlangga; Malayan Nature Journal, 2022, and The other tiger: history, beliefs, and rituals in Borneo by Bernard Sellato; Temasek Working Paper, 2019 https://www.iseas.edu.sg/articles-commentaries/temasek-working-paper-series/the-other-tiger-history-beliefs-and-rituals-in-borneo-by-bernard-sellato/).
The permanent exhibitions in the Borneo Cultures Museum offer a rare experience for curious-minded visitors who would like to see some of the most spectacular examples of traditional objects that use animal teeth for various purposes. In particular, visitors will find such cultural objects in the exhibitions on levels 3 and 5 of the museum.
Since the accurate biological identification of any animal teeth (which will in the end provide answers to such important questions as what type of tooth are they, and from which kind of animals—the sort of questions that interest not only the biologists but also the ethnologists) will require close examination of the actual items with detailed measurements taken using scientific research tools, what follows remains, out of necessity, a ‘sketchy’ guide to animal teeth used as cultural objects that one could find in the Borneo Cultures Museum. Yet, such a supplementary guide, alongside the general information that one could read from the museum explanatory board associated with each display cases, will be sufficient enough to lead the inquisitive readers into the captivating animal world of Bornean cultural artifacts.
Level 3 exhibition: In Harmony with Nature
A pair of earrings (see Figure 2) made of the fangs of a large wild cat species, most likely from fully grown clouded leopard. In both ornaments, the root of the tooth is capped with metal part. The number written on one of the pair refers to the museum catalogue number, and this item is also attached with a string of small beads. Charles Hose in 1926 noted that the fangs of clouded leopard were traditionally much sought after and used by the Kenyah community to fashion their ear ornaments wear among the men. This species of wild cat is culturally important for some native communities—readers who wish to know more on this will benefit tremendously from a paper succinctly written by Jayl Langub in 2022 (Cultural significance of clouded leopard Neofelis diardi among indigenous communities of Sarawak; Malayan Nature Journal).
This Sitagan necklace (see Figure 3) is adorned with 24 fangs, mostly belong to medium- to large-sized carnivores including sun bear, wild cats, and possibly also domestic dog. But, a few of them look very similar to the elongated canine teeth of adult male barking deer (these teeth are sometimes called tusks among the canine-bearing deer). Nearby is the Sembon ritual necklace with two sun bear fangs and two front teeth (incisors) of wild boar strung together with beads and a series of hawk-bells.
Figure 4 shows two charm strings—one attached to a nicely woven basket (item 4), the other to a small glass jar (item 2). There is one sun bear fang strung along with beads in the former. Note the double circular pores bored through the root of the fang. The other item is with a string that holds a wild boar lower canine tooth (also known as tusk) and a few antlers of barking deer. Only adult male wild boars have large tusks such as this, and only male adult barking deer are adorned with antlers.
Figure 5 shows the Pimurang ceremonial necklaces. The necklace on the left contains a number of lower canine teeth and one upper canine tooth of wild boar strung alongside with a single sun bear fang. The right necklace holds a few lower canine teeth, front teeth and a molar from wild boar, together with a barking deer antler.
Some other animal products used as charms are also on display here. Noteworthy among these are a wild boar lower tusk attached to a hawk bell, and a small piece of a cheek tooth from the rare rhinoceros. This latter item is part of an unerupted tooth, which means that the rhinoceros never reached adulthood when it died. Prehistoric people in Sarawak may have a similar cultural practice too (see an article written by Lord Medway in 1958 – Rhinoceros’ and pigs’ teeth as Niah charms?; Sarawak Museum Journal).
Level 5 exhibition: Objects of Desire
Figure 6 shows a traditional baby-carrier adorned with eight sun bear fangs arranged in pairs. It is said that only aristocratic families may have baby-carriers decorated with full-figure motif such as this in the multicoloured beaded panel. Baby-carriers used by the Kayan and Kenyah communities are usually hung with various totemic objects, including, for instance, fangs from large carnivores such as clouded leopard or tiger/leopard, or more often ‘imitators’ of fangs made from either dental or bone materials. It is believed that these amulets of animal teeth may add to the spiritual protection of the baby.
Figure 7 shows a Bidayuh ceremonial necklace used by chieftains and shamans with four sun bear fangs strung among beads interspersed with bells. Note the three small holes bored through the root part of each tooth. There is also a parang Ilang of Orang Ulu with the sheath adorned with wild boar tusks and front teeth, as well as at least eight fangs of sun bear. Elsewhere, the typically fan-shaped front teeth of large herbivores, such as wild/domestic species of cattle, may be used to decorate the sheaths of bladed weapons.
Unfortunately, in recent years many of the animals mentioned above have entered the list of endangered wildlife threatened with extinction. It is, however, a great relief to learn that whilst some of the most beautiful traditions continue to flourish in Borneo, many native communities, instead of continuing to acquire more real teeth, have voluntarily adopted modern-day substitutes made of synthetic materials.
LIM Tze Tshen, honorary secretary of the Friends of Sarawak Museum, is a vertebrate palaeontologist and zooarchaeologist. He is reachable through limtzetshen
“Heritage Snippets of Sarawak” is a fortnightly column.
— DayakDaily
