Lute, Hasapi
Batak tribe, Sumatra Indonesia
Early 20th c.
Provenance: Lawrence Grant, NYC, retired insurance executive who acquired this Lute when he was working in Singapore between 1981-1985.
The Toba Batak people of northern Sumatra create elegant two-stringed lutes known as hasapi. In the past, most Batak music was sacred and, among other contexts, the hasapi was played as part of a love magic ritual designed to win a woman’s affections. At the top this example is adorned with a seated ancestor figure carved in a classic style, that still retains its original headdress made of cotton cloth and goat hair. Its dark brown patina is superb.
Lute, Hasapi
Batak tribe, Sumatra Indonesia
Early 20th c.
Provenance: Lawrence Grant, NYC, retired insurance executive who acquired this Lute when he was working in Singapore between 1981-1985.
The Toba Batak people of northern Sumatra create elegant two-stringed lutes known as hasapi. In the past, most Batak music was sacred and, among other contexts, the hasapi was played as part of a love magic ritual designed to win a woman’s affections. At the top this example is adorned with a seated ancestor figure carved in a classic style, that still retains its original headdress made of cotton cloth and goat hair. Its dark brown patina is superb.