The Moon Of Pejeng - Decoration

Pura Penataran Sasih, Pejeng

These line drawings ultimately derive from the original 1908 field drawings by W. O. J. Nieuwenkamp. Nieuwenkamp only sketched one quadrant of the tympanum (lower illustration), from which Kempers restored the full disc by making use of a fourfold symmetry that is present on the original. This symmetry extends to the body of the drum, upon which four pairs of heads are outlined between the four handles (upper illustrations). Elements of these patterns, including similar (but not identical) heads and the central star-shape design on the tympanum, are found on other bronze drums, but their meaning isn't known. It has been suggested that the heads might symbolize ancestors, or perhaps the owners of the drum. Nieuwenkamp's illustration (upper, left) proves that the missing piece of the base (see photograph, previous page) must have broken off before 1908, when the sketch was made.