Songkok (Princely Crown), 19th century
Bugineseexpand_more
Raffia palm leaf fiber, gold wire, gold lamellaexpand_more
The Tess E. Armstrong Fund, and gifts of funds from Al and Dena Naylor, and Jeremy Collatz and James Cahnexpand_more 2021.8
Not on Viewexpand_more
This ceremonial headdress (songkok) was probably made for a Buginese King in the southern region of Sulawesi, an island in present day Indonesia. The Buginese were renowned seafarers and traders who converted to Islam in the early 17th century, and adopted the Ottoman ‘Fez’ as a form of official headgear, worn to Friday prayers at the mosque. Black-colored songkoks such as this indicate that the wearer had yet to make the pilgrimage to Mecca.
This songkok was finely woven of raffia palm leaf fiber and gold. Thicker palm leaf fiber was used to construct the structural support, while the ultrafine filament was stained to form the exterior. Gold thread was used to create the interweave pattern which rises in the band along the side of the hat, while a flattened gold ‘ribbon’ was used for the radiating concentric circles on the top. The gold was measured in ringgit, formerly a trading unit which dates to at least the 17th century, and the name of the currency in present day Malaysia, where many Bugis have since settled. The amount of gold used in a Songkok directly corresponds to the rank of the aristocrat in the court. Here, the width of the gold band and unprecedented number of concentric gold rings indicates that it was once worn by the King. After Indonesian independence in 1945, such sonkgoks fell out of favor, replaced by the ‘peci,’ frequently worn by Muslim men throughout the Indonesian archipelago and beyond.
Details
- Title
- Songkok (Princely Crown)
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2021.8
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know
Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.