Tenun Ikat Sumba weaving of Indonesia (Indonesia)
Nomination: Urgent Safeguarding List 2013
EN: Ladies ski llfully design and weave beautiful Tenun lkat Sumba textiles by hand, using very simple equipment such as this backstrap loom, using their own bodies to maintain tension in the warp threads (Rende Village, East Sumba).
EN: Ladies in Waitabar traditional village, Waikabubak, West Sumba weave Tenun lkat Sumba cloths using coloured threads and simple backstrap looms.
EN: Informal transmission of Tenun lkat Sumba cultural heritage from a mother to her daugher. The weft threads are tied together tightly according to the design, to resist dyeing with natural dyes. Such informal transmission is weakening.
EN: Tenun Ikat Sumba is part of the traditional dress, cultural identity, and cultural heritage of the people of Sumba. Most people, however, no longer wear such cloth from day to day, but only on special occasions such as traditional ceremonies.
EN: Tenun I kat Sumba patterns and motifs depict the life, cosmology and traditional beliefs of Sumba people. The motifs contain a rich symbolism of flora, fauna including domestic and wild animals and birds, fish, mythological and humanoid ancestor figures.
EN: Nowadays, most people no longer cultivate and spin their own cotton, but purchase cotton thread, and many buy dyes or coloured thread from merchants. Thus a part of the traditional knowledge of spinning and of natural dyes is fading.
EN: Children are busy with their studies, and thus have little time for learning Ikat Sumba. Most admit that they do not understand the symbolism of Tenun Ikat Sumba patterns and motifs.
EN: Over 137 community members were interviewed for compiling this nomination file, and providing additional information for its revision.
EN: Community members gave their input for revision of the nomination file at several Verification Seminars, held in Waingapu, East Sumba, and Waikabubak, West Sumba.
EN: After giving their input for revision of the file, community members have given their free, prior and informed consent to the content of the revised nomination file, and its submission to UNESCO for possible inscription.
