Southeast Asia, Indonesia, West Java, ca. 20th century to 21st century CE. A playful pair of wooden puppets made for the traditional Sundanese puppet art known as Wayang Golek, each dressed in patterned fabric with elaborate beaded decoration. Presenting articulated arms controlled by wooden sticks, the figures display elaborately-carved heads, each with 2 faces. These puppets are used in wayang, a theatrical performance unique to Java that uses puppets and human dancers. This style of theatre has been designated by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage since 2003. Size of larger (male): 7.3" W x 25.25" H (18.5 cm x 64.1 cm); 25.75" H (65.4 cm) on included custom stand.

This particular type of puppet - operated by a rod underneath the clothing and rods connected to the hands - is known as a wayang golek, which today is associated with the Sundanese culture of West Java. This area and the northern part of Java are home to some of the oldest Muslim kingdoms on the island and it is believed that, from the 17th century onward, puppets of this style were used to tell stories of Muslim history; later, it became a way to tell the stories of the Ramayana and Mahabarata.

Provenance: private Lumberton, Texas, USA collection, acquired before 2010

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#183761

Each puppet is set on a wooden stand with a rod attached to the stand that connects the head to the body. The female puppet's rod is detachable, but the male's is not. Both bodies and heads are detachable from rods. Some light surface wear as shown with a few small pulls to fabric, but otherwise both are intact and excellent with nice remaining pigments and detail.