IDNO

DG.101998.PAO

Description

A man wearing a white shirt, trousers and glasses, probably a visiting government official, ascends a ladder to the tanju (open gallery) of the longhouse at Kampung Benuk, which is lined by men and women dressed in adat gawai (pre-Christian rituals) clothing waiting to greet him. On his left is another man, possibly another official, dressed in a dark suit.
The women lining the tanju mostly wear long-sleeved blouses, Iban bidang (warp-ikat skirts) and sepiya (round cloth caps with red, black and white strips and back flaps). The men wear shirts, trousers and headscarves.
At the top of the ladder are the flags of the state of Sarawak, showing a crown on a cross, and the Federation of Malaysia, showing a crescent moon, star and stripes, crisscrossing over a rectangular bamboo pole archway.
In the background can be seen the large sloping roof of another section of the longhouse and thick jungle foliage.

Place

SE Asia Borneo; Malaysia; Sarawak; Penrissen; Kampung Benuk [Kampung Segu Bunuk]

Cultural Affliation

Bidayuh [historically Land Dayak]

Named Person

Photographer

?Paka anak Otor

Collector / Expedition

Paka anak Otor

Date

circa 1963 - 1973

Collection Name

Paka anak Otor Collection

Source

Paka anak OtorChua, Liana

Format

Print Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

Source: A selection of 185 prints from Paka anak Otor’s larger collection of approximately 500 prints was made by Liana Chua during fieldwork in Kampung Benuk, Sarawak, Malaysia, in 2005. The purchase of non-exclusive reproduction rights [RM 1845, £250] by the Museum to the family of Paka anak Otor [82 Kampung Benuk, Jalan Puncak Borneo, Kuching 93250, Sarawak, Malaysia], and digital copy photographs of the collection [RM 869, £125] were paid for by the Museum Acquisition Fund [£250] and part of a Crowther-Beynon grant [£125] for the collecting of Sarawak objects. The digital scans were made by Fung Huang Colour Photo Centre [153 Padungan Road, Kuching, Sarawak] in 2005. [Liana Chua 2/8/2007]

Context: Kampung Benuk has been a small-scale tourist attraction since the 1960s, being particularly famous for its longhouse. Its first visitors were often members of the British, Australian and American armed forces stationed nearby during the Confrontation years between Indonesia and Malaysia (1963-1966); later visitors included civilian tourists, foreign dignitaries, UNESCO representatives, film crews, and government officials. Otor and his family were central to this nascent industry, often playing host to the visitors and performing dances for their entertainment.
The prominent display of the Sarawak State flag (this particular design being used from 1963-1973) and Malaysian flag (Sarawak became part of Malaysia in 1963) suggests that this was an official visit by a member of the state or national government.
Benuk’s visitor numbers appear to have peaked around the 1970s and 1980s, especially with increasing domestic and Asian tourism and the state government’s tourist promotion efforts. Today it remains a fairly popular attraction despite its much diminished longhouse. [Liana Chua 30/8/2007]

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Liana Chua 30/8/2007]