Geometrie Motifs – Sraights : the dot, straight line, triangle, key, rhomb, swastika, meander. The swastika is a symbol of the sun, sign of good luck. In continued form it is called “ Banji “, from a Mandarin phrase, wan dzi, meaning good fortune. The meander is classified in the banji goup. The tumpal, which is a repeated series of elongated triangles joined to gether along the base, is another ancient, common motif. It is so basic to traditional ornamentation that is survived even the lasting influence of Hinduism. It is frequently referred to as a bamboo shoot and bears the signivicance of the plant: Vitality, fertility, rapid growth.
Geometric Motifs – curves : spiral, double spriral, circle either independent, interlacing or adjacent. The double spiral is by some deemed to be the source of the “parang” pattern on batiks which was once reserved for the sole use of the royal families of Central Java.
The Humand Body appears in various aspects: full face, three-quarters, the face ( mask ) alone, or the whole body. A later redition was in the very definitive stance of the Javanese wayang (shadow-puppet ) figure. Sometime the body became so stylized that it was no longer recognizable. The human body is a protective element bearing all the mystic force of the human being. Therefore, it is a protection against evil as well as a representation of the ancestors who what over all. The face or mask has the same power. In clances, for instance, a mask in made for a specific dancer and may not be worn by anyone else and upon any other ocation, for it is considered to “come alive”.
The water buffalo is another figure which frequently appears in Indonesia ornamentation. It has been used in prehistoric cave or rock paintings, to embellish house roofs, in jewellery, sometimes the whole head, sometimes just the horns. The water buffalo has been so important to the development of life in Indonesia that is was deemed to have certain powers. It became a sign of standing, wealth, strength, and fertility. The shape of its horns is related to the moon.
Other Animals which often occur in Indonesian art forms are the crocodile, mythical naga snake, cock, the mytical Garuda bird, and the hornbill. The crocodile and the snake are beings of the other half of the world while birds represent the upper half. Water beings carry the body of the deseaced across the wates between here and there; the winged beings carry the soul upwards. Such figures are of great importance in traditional Indonesia culture in many forms, and in Java and Bali this was reinforced by the Hindu religion. The cock is related to the sun, since he crows at sunrise. He had force, courage, and reprecents fertility. This bird has been much used in ritual.
