sigalegale
Sign in to saveAlso known as si galegale, si gale gale
Sigalegale (Batak: ᯘᯪᯎᯞᯩᯎᯞᯩ ) is a wooden puppet used in a funeral dance performance of the Batak people in Samosir Island, Northern Sumatra. Sigale Gale is a well-known feature for visiting tourists. During the dance, the puppet is operated from behind, like a marionette, using strings that run through the ornate wooden platform on which it stands. The setup enables its arms and body to be moved and its head to turn.
Wikidata facts
- Subclass of
- Indonesian dance
- Country
- Indonesia
- Located in
- North Sumatra
- Image
- Sigale-gale, Tomok, danau Toba, Sumatra Utara.jpg
via Wikidata · CC0
~4 min read
Encyclopedic overview
6 sectionsContents
- Legend
- Early reference
- Gallery
- See also
- References
- External links
Sigalegale (Batak: ᯘᯪᯎᯞᯩᯎᯞᯩ ) is a wooden puppet used in a funeral dance performance of the Batak people in Samosir Island, Northern Sumatra. Sigale Gale is a well-known feature for visiting tourists. During the dance, the puppet is operated from behind, like a marionette, using strings that run through the ornate wooden platform on which it stands. The setup enables its arms and body to be moved and its head to turn.
Traditionally the performance was carried out of childless person. Batak Toba believe souls become an ancestral spirit and the children of the deceased perform funerary rites. If a person died childless a si gale-gale is created as a substitute. Complicated sigale gale could be life sized and featured actuation using wet moss or sponges that could be squeezed to make the dolls appear to cry.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “sigalegale” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.