New Items from Old Traditions

Night was falling as Yunita Kanca hauled in the Bemban bark (Donax Cannaeformis) that had been drying in her yard. The 28-year-old woman from Kenasau village, Sentarum Lake Region, West Kalimantan, hurried to strip off the bark fibers with a penknife. "The fibers make the weaving uneven and cause the price to fall," she told Tempo two weeks ago.

Kanca's sister, 25-year-old Leokrita Diana, sat next to her, skillfully weaving fiber strands into dew-droplet patterns. "This is called tangga ambun, which means 'natural coolness in the morning'," she said.