When a man of the Batak in Sumatra dies, his first born son must celebrate the comprehensive funeral ceremony. It is considered a misfortune if there is no male descendant, and the soul of the deceased person (‘begu’) can only assume a low, subordinate status in the afterlife. For this reason, the Batak have devised a stratagem: they build an ‘artificial son’, a marionette made of wood, called ‘si gale-gale’! This naturalistic, movable ‘si gale-gale puppet’ performs all the necessary funerary rituals. It is controlled by puppeteers behind a curtain by means of strings: thus an ‘artificial son’ can move his head, eyes, arms, hands, fingers and legs. It can also ‘speak’ thanks to a wooden plate lodged in his open mouth as a ‘tongue’.
The present head of a ‘si gale-gale puppet’ comes from the Toba-Batak on Lake Toba, in central Sumatra. Carved in hard wood, with red-brown painted skin and black hair (hairstyle, eyebrows and moustache). The back of the head is hollow in order to insert the strings that control the movements. Also lodged in the aforementioned recess is a pair of movable eyes, made of silvery metal and black pupils on a wooden base, and a retractable tongue made of wood. The peg under the neck is padded with fabric for the purpose of attaching the head firmly to the body. This ‘si gale-gale marionette’ wears a red turban with typical Batak pattern (‘ulos mangiring’) on the head. An original piece in excellent condition, no damage (the string at the back is new). First half to mid-20th century; H: c. 34 cm (with turban). (ME)

Provenance: Belgian private collection.

Lit.: ‘Batak’ by Achim Sibeth, ill. 74; ‘Batak-Sculpture’ by A. Sibeth & B. W. Carpenter, p. 35, p. 305–307.

Additional picture:
Batak: A ‘Si gale-gale’ funerary marionette in use as ‘artificial son’.
Photo: 'Batak' by Achim Sibeth.