Museu da Marioneta

Wayang Kulit

The shadow puppets of Java are made of buffalo skin, cleaned and softened through successive treatment stages and cut according to the iconography of the represented character; the translucent surface is covered with richly painted colour ornaments made out of natural pigments and underlined in gold leaf.

The puppet’s painting is also accentuated by the cut of the skin according to a variety of patterns and a delicacy similar to lace. The decoration’s obsession with detail and filling the available space is very typical of Indian arts and cultures strongly influenced by it, such as those of Southeast Asia.

Each of the puppets is manipulated by hand thanks to a support made of wood and, in the case of better quality puppets, to the carving of buffalo’s horn—a material that acquires a beautiful transparency when exposed to light, similarly to the coloured and decorated puppet’s skin.

The tradition of Wayang Kulit, name by which the shadow puppet’s art is known in Java and Malaysia (Kedah and Kelantan), was one of the greatest manifestations of its cultures—and it still is in Java. Its presence in the courts daily life is documented by inscriptions from the 9th century, referring to the existence of groups specialized in dance, masks and shadows residing in Hindu and Buddhist temples and in palaces.

The shadow puppet’s theatre was an inspiration source to human and divine representation on the many and magnificent monuments of Java and continues to influence the textile and metallurgic arts.

The figure of the person who manipulates and gives life and voice to the shadow puppets, the Dalang, is invested of magical and spiritual power. He has an important role in the court rituals of Cirebon, on Java’s north coast, in the central principalities, Solo and Jogya, and also in rites of passage, weddings, circumcisions and ceremonies of the families’ daily life.

The shadow puppets are respected and revered as sacred objects (pusaka) at the palaces of Cirebon, Solo and Jogya.

Besides their ritual and sacred role, the shadow puppets also allow identifying different behaviours, showing the public the ones typical of heroes and those which are socially reproved.

As it is usual in the arts of Southeast Asia, the repertoire of Wayang Kulit is inspired by the Indian epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, its heroes and many adventures. Rama, Sita and the monkey Hanuman of Ramayana, Bima and Arjuna of Mahabharata, are particularly appreciated.