MANAGING DESIGN

TATTOO OF AN IBAN

For Borneo's Dayak peoples, spirit embody everything: animals, plants and humans. Many groups have drawn on this power by using images from nature in their tattoos, creating a composite of floral motifs images. Tattoo are created by artist who consult spirit guides to reveal a design. Among the Iban, the largest and most feared indigenous group in Borneo, men apply tattoo.

These tattoos are blue-black, make of soot or powdered charcoal, substances thought to ward off malevolent spirits. Some groups spike their pigments with charms-a ground-up piece of a meteorite or a shard of animal bone- to make their tattoo even more powerful. For the outline, the artist attaches up to 5 bamboo splinters or European needles to a stick. After dipping them in pigment, he or she taps them into the skin with mallet. Solid area are fined in circular configuration of 15 to 20 needles.

RITUAL TATTOOING

Traditionally, Dayak tattooing was performed in a sacred ritual among gathered tribe members. Among the Ngaju Dayak, Krutak said the tattoo artist began with the a sacrifice to ancestor spirits, killing a chicken or other fowl and spilling it blood. After a period of chanting, the artist started on extremely painful tattooing process that often lasted 6 or 8 hours. Some tattoos were applied over many week. For coming of age tattoo rituals, the village men dressed in bark-cloth. This cloth, made from the paper mulberry tree, also draped corpses and was worn by widows.

Image 1: Coming of Age tattoo also known as Bungai Terung. Image taken from https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/b8/f8/bd/b8f8bd8e649586cac6ac9cfc44255669.jpg

HEAD-HUNTING TATTOO

One Dayak group, the Iban, believe that the soul inhabit the head. Therefore, taking the head of one's enemy gives yo their soul. Taking the head also conferred your victim's status, skill and power, which helped ensure farming success and fertility among the tribe. Upon return from a successful head-hunting raid, participants were promptly recognized with tattoo inked on their tattoo.

Image 2: Head-Hunting Tattoo. Image taken from http://www.borneoheadhunter.com/basics/images/img1.jpg

References is taken from https://ibanology.wordpress.com/2013/08/18/tattoo-of-an-iban-from-borneo/