Wooden plugs such as this one were used to seal jars containg the magical substances used by the datu in his rituals. The Batak people recognized and honoured many types of spernatural being and deity as well as the spirits of the ancestors.
The datu’s role included acting as an intermediary between the human and spirit worlds, performing healing, divination, defense against malevolent magic or entities, and other ritual functions. Magical objects could be enlivened by the application of special substances which the datu would prepare. These included pukpuk, a substance made from the ritually prepared remains of humans and animals, believed to be extremely powerful, pukpuk was used to enliven important sacred objects, either by smearing on the surface, or sealing into holes which were then plugged to contain the power within.
Many of the Batak artefacts prized by collectors are containers for magical substances and ingredients, and these often have protective spirit figures as a part of their construction or decoration. Such contaners are known as Perminangken.
(much of this information comes from the resources of Metropoltan Museum, where examples of Perminangken can be seen)
I believe this particular carving to date from the early 20th century, or possible the late 19th. It was bought at auction at the dispersal sale of a respected tribal art collection in Oxford around 2016, and has been in my own personal collection since then. I’ll be sad to see it go and hope that it’s found by someone who will love it as i have!
