WHAT SO DISTINCTIVE OF THE IBANS CULTURAL ARTEFACTS IN THEIR LONGHOUSES IN SARAWAK?

Abstract

Prior to the establishment of a museum in Sarawak by the Brooke family in 1891, the Iban society preserved cultural objects in their longhouses using their own distinct methods. Traditional care is the foundation based on their beliefs and conceptions of the world's existence. This ethnography study examines the traditional conservation of Iban cultural relics in longhouses. Qualitative research technique, including fieldwork, documentation, and interviews was employed. Data collection was done based on the collection of pieces of informant memory. The findings indicate that the traditional management and maintenance of the Iban cultural artifacts is enchanting because it mixes parts of their beliefs, the mysticism and believing those cultural items would come to life and active so that they can be used in rituals and ceremonies. This research provides a new perspective on the cultural insight of an indigenous ethnic group the Ibans’ residing in the Borneo archipelago in with the anticipation that their identity known to the world and will be inherited for the new generations.