NEW! Fabulous Indonesian Wayang Kulit Stick Puppet, Hanuman the Monkey King, newest made in Java, 15"great vintage condition, collectible folk art

Please read the entire description for interesting cultural information.
This wonderful wayang kulit (shadow puppet) is *Hanuman, the Monkey King, an important character in the **shadow puppet play of the ancient Sanskrit Ramayana story (see story below).

The cut-out work on this piece is really fabulous as is the gold and the colorful hand-painting. It's made of leather with a rod and sticks. The central rod is dark buffalo horn and the two arm sticks are made of carved wood. The arm joints are movable.

The body measures approx. 15" (38cm) long and with the central rod it's 21 1/2" (54cm) long. It's in excellent vintage condition, like new. This wonderful wayang kulit was made in Java, Indonesia probably in the 50s or 60s, and may newest even be an antique.

This is usable as a puppet (not for young children) and would also make a lovely display item or wall decoration. I have one more VERY large wayang kulit puppet (see 4th photo). If you are interested, contact me for a photo, price and extra shipping fees.

The CANNOT BE COMBINED with any other listing (unless the larger puppet mentioned above) because of its unusual size and shape.

Shipping is free in the U.S. This will be shipped priority mail. For INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING, contact me with your country. For CANADA, include your postal code. It may take me awhile to find the right-sized box for this.

*Hanuman is featured in the great Hindu epic the Ramayana. He earned his path to deification by performing feats of strength, devotion, and courage while helping Rama (an avatar of Vishnu) in countless exciting incidents. The most famous is when Hanuman is sent as an advance spy to Lanka, the capital of the mighty demon Ravana's empire. Ravana has provoked Lord Rama by carrying away his beloved wife Sita in order to start a war. During the epic times that follow, Hanuman brings hope and secret messages to the captive Sita, leads Rama's monkey army in the Battle of Lanka and single-handedly kills many demons including Lankini, champion of the demons.

Because of his bravery, perseverance, strength and devoted service, Hanuman is regarded as a perfect symbol of selflessness and loyalty. Worship of Hanuman helps the individual to counter the bad karma borne out of selfish action, and grants the believer fortitude and strength in his or her own trials during the journey of life.

**Shadow puppetry has ancient traditions in India and China, followed by Cambodia and Indonesia. These wonderful shadow puppets jump to life during a shadow puppet play. A large screen is set up at night with a bright light and the puppets behind the screen (see last 3 photos).

I saw a shadow puppet play in Java when I was there in the mid 60s - fascinating! There is always a gamelan orchestra and boisterous dialogue. One master puppeteer does all the voices, modulating differently for each character, and manipulates all the puppets, sometimes more than one in each hand. He speaks for all the characters, sings, directs the accompanying musicians of the traditional gamelan orchestra, and makes sound effects (usually with his feet).

The Indonesian people love their shadow puppet plays which usually consist of long Hindu epic stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata that can last for many hours. I really enjoyed the fascinating puppet show I saw but of course I didn't stay for the entire time.

Sometimes the stories are more current or local, complete with some very funny dialogue by the servant clowns to amuse the crowd. They usually end with good winning out over evil. Just google "wayang kulit" to learn more about this fascinating art.

Wayang is a theater tradition as sophisticated as Shakespeare and 1,000 years old. You can google "wayang kulit" to learn more about this interesting art form.

The play is accompanied by a small Javanese gamelan ensemble that plays traditional music. The familiar stories of the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and local village legends are all told through the wayang kulit puppet performances (see puppets in last photo). This type of puppet is not to be confused with wayang golek which are three-dimensional rod puppets. I also have one of these listed. Contact me if you are interested.

Be sure to check out my other puppets and dolls in the section "International Dolls and Puppets."

To see unique, handmade jewelry inspired by my travels, go to my other Etsy shop - SandraDesigns.etsy.com