The Shadow Puppet Tualen – Old Carved Panel

The Shadow Puppet Tualen – Balinese Architectural Relief Panel
Height: 100 cm, Width: 25 cm, Depth: 3 cm (about 39 x 10 inches)

An unusual early 20th century Balinese architectural carved relief panel of the popular Wayang Kulit (shadow play) puppet Tualen, in excellent condition.

Old Balinese architectural panels are extremely hard to come by as they were originally exposed to the elements and few have survived the ravages of a tropical climate. They were made by master-carvers to decorate the walls and screens of village temples, regional palaces and other important buildings.  Mostly they feature traditional floral motifs, but this one is particularly nice as it depicts the popular shadow puppet character Tualen, one of the two the comic attendants to the virtuous party in the wayang kulit stories of Bali and Java.

The panel is in excellent condition apart from a small and very old split near the base and a few minor scuffs low down. It is probably carved in local albesia wood and originally brightly painted, but the colours have faded and weathered with age to form a subtle and very beautiful surface patina.  It is one of two architectural panels collected in Bali (Indonesia) in the late 1980s.  I very much doubt that you could find an old panel like this in Bali today.

This highly original decorative panel would look great on a wall (possibly paired with the other one if still available)!

Note: As this is an unusually large and heavy item there will be a surcharge to cover the additional cost of shipping and insurance to destinations outside the UK.  Overseas buyers will later be invoiced at cost for any shipping and insurance shortfall (estimated to be around $100 to USA and Canada).