The Dayaks of Buay of the Simpang River use this type of basketry on their backs, fitted with support frames to help the user to carry heavy loads. The baskets are designed to be durable and made as items of trade. This rattan basket belongs to a selection of Borneo baskets collected by William Louis Abbott (1860-1936), the American naturalist, renowned for his prodigious collections from the Malay Archipelago.Plaiting strands of contrasting colours to form intricate designs is a distinct and well developed decorative technique in Borneo. Designs are sometimes painted on the surface of the basket using a pigment called 'jernung' (dragon’s blood), extracted from the fruits of rattan species. The various techniques in this collection include barkwork, canework, leafwork, rootwork, stemwork, palm-leaf work, and rattan work.
