Karo Batak people north Sumatra, Indonesia Priest's magic staff
[tungkot malehat or tunggal malehat] wood, cotton, feathers,
hair 162.0 (h) x 22.0 (w) x 31.0 (d) cm National Gallery of
Australia, Canberra Elaborately carved wooden staffs are the
most important tools of Batak priests [datu]. Potent and greatly
feared, the objects are used in esoteric rites to ward off evil,
protect villages and foretell the future. So powerful are they
that the sorcerer himself carves the images into his staff, and
impregnates it with a magic potion. That powerful substance is
created through the macabre process of abducting a child from
another community, gaining his allegiance and then killing him
with poison and distilling his corpse. This staff depicts a male
on horseback wearing a splendid headdress of feathers, cotton
and human hair. A small female figure is seated on the horse’s
head, and a dog-like animal prances on its tail. The horse
stands on four figures representing the cardinal points.