Malay Magic _ Being an introduction to the - Walter William Skeat

(Perpustakaan Sri Jauhari) #1

rod (buluh sangkutkan kain). This rod terminates at each extremity in an
ornamental piece of scroll-work (sulor bayong) covered with scarlet cloth, which
is sometimes made to issue from a short stem of horn or ivory, and has a wooden
collar called dulang-dulang. This dulang-dulang, moreover, is sometimes
provided with small hollows (’mbat-’mbat) at the top, two in front which are
filled with rose-water or perfume (ayer mawar or ayer wangi), and two at the
back which are filled with flowers.


Above the clothes-rod, and between its suspending cords (tali pĕnggantong)—
which, by the way, are also covered with scarlet cloth—an inner fringe of “Bo-
leaves” (daun budi dalam) is sometimes added at the top of the curtain.


At the wedding of a Raja nothing else should be put inside the curtain, but at an
ordinary wedding a few small articles of typical marriage furniture are usually
added as follows:—


Three or four small clothes boxes (saharah), such as are kept by every Malay
family, and pĕti kapor (boxes whose corners are strengthened and decorated with
brass) are ranged upon the mattress just below the clothes-rod. Upon these
should be placed (a) the bangking, which is a kind of jar or urn of lacquered
wood, ranging from about half a foot to a foot in height, and contains a portion
of the bride’s wardrobe; and (b) the bun,^79 which is either octagonal (pĕchah
d’lapan), or hexagonal (pĕchah anam), as the case may be, and which may be
described as a box of tin, or sometimes of lacquered wood, whose contents are as
follows:—(1) a couple of combs (sikat dua bilah), one with large and one with
small teeth; (2) a small cup or saucer of hair oil (a preparation of cocoa-nut oil),
or attar of roses (minyak attar), or pomatum (kateneh); (3) a small pen-knife for
paring the nails; (4) a pair of scissors; (5) a preparation of antimony (chĕlak),
which is a sort of black ointment applied by the Malays to the inside edge of the
eyelids; and (6) a Malay work-box (called dulang in Selangor and bintang at
Malacca), which is a circular box of painted or lacquered wood, furnished with a
lid, and containing needles, cotton, and the rest of the Malay housewife’s
paraphernalia.


Near the door of the curtain is placed an earthenware water-jar, called gĕlok
(gĕlok Kĕdah and gĕlok Perak are the usual “makes”); this jar stands upon a
small brass or earthenware plate with high sides (bokor), and its mouth is
covered with a brass or earthenware saucer (chepir), on which is laid the brass or

Free download pdf