Shield (baluse)
20th century, 1950–2000
Object PlaceNias, Indonesia
Medium/TechniqueLightweight wood, rattan fiber
DimensionsOverall: 126.5 x 29.5 x 10 cm (49 13/16 x 11 5/8 x 3 15/16 in.)
Credit LineGift of Geneviève McMillan in memory of Reba Stewart
Accession number2009.2744
On View
Not on viewClassificationsWarfare, hunting, fishing
Collections
By the 1980s most ancient baluse shields had departed Indonesia for Western collections, and people in Nias replaced the originals with modern copies. Made of lightweight wood, these shields are reinforced horizontally with fiber lashes. Their shape may allude to the head of a crocodile, an animal that instills both fear and awe. Originally used in battle, the shields gradually acquired different meaning when warfare ceased in the twentieth century. Today respected visitors may be greeted at the entrance to a village by a "warrior" in ceremonial dress who holds such a shield.
Provenance1960/1961, possibly sold by Galerie Argiles, Paris, to Geneviève McMillan (b. 1922 - d. 2008), Cambridge, MA; 2008, to the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation, Cambridge; 2009, gift of the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 17, 2009)
19th–20th century
Late 19th to early 20th century
19th century
