Featured Indonesian coromandel / macassar wood carving / bust

Finally made it back out to a thrift for the first time in a month the other day and found this guy. Assuming he's a farmer type fellow? I thought this one was well carved and detailed enough (woven hat, muscles and bones / facial features, and he has a nice beard going on) to merit a post here for show and tell if nothing else 6" high.

 

Really nice - that hat!
How do you know it's macassar, @aaroncab ?

 

well, that's a nice one.
I'm so used to seeing gals....but he's very well carved....

 

You must have an altogether better class of thrifts where you live. I've never seen anything remotely that nice in my local stores.

 

Guess I really don't know for absolute sure, but given I'm sure it's indonesian, and the grain/tone/color heft/solidness of the wood - it's my best guess (mostly learned from @Any Jewelry identifying a couple other pieces of coromandel I previously found) - my understanding is that coromandel and macassar ebony are two names for the same wood.

 

I got this at a store called "B Thrifty" which is a huge mega thrift - they have tons(literally) of clothing and about 5000 items of garbage that sit there and never sell, and occasionally little gems like this that pop up. I find something good about one out of every 20 times I go in there.

 

I was confused by your spelling (cormandel)

Fun word for the day: Antimacassars started out as simple cloth chair backs meant to protect upholstered furniture from macassar hair dressing oil.

And evolved into the frumpier doily

 

He is beautifully carved, Aaron. I have seen many Balinese 'man with hat' busts, but this one is different. The style of the hat and the long hair underneath don't ring a bell. Could he be Filippino? Some Igorot carvers are very good, and Igorot men traditionally have long hair.

 

You'd certainly know much more than I do about anything to do with this subject

I did some googling before I posted and found this fellow:

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-r...-traditional-conical-wicker-hat-32475986.html

Edit:

and a few others:

http://joelsantos.net/?attachment_id=823

https://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/p...ops-ubud-high-res-stock-photography/128113941


EDIT again - I don't find this particular style of hat when modifying my search to be Philippines of Filipino etc... but I'll keep looking.

 

Ah, you are absolutely right. I have been away from Indonesia for too long. And I only come across the old carvings here, which have more stylized hats, in keeping with the Art Deco style.

 

Now that one is on another level!

 

I've corrected my "o"mission in the title

 

First of all, !

But, I thought you couldn't edit titles!?

Had at least one I'd have liked to have changed!

 

There may be a time limit to editing titles - but I'm not sure. Top of thread - "Thread tools" drop down menu.