Such doors were placed at the entrance to shrines carved in limestone cliffs. They served as doors to crypts which held the remains of members of the aristocracy. Doors with images of water buffalo are said to have been used especially for priests. The buffalo is an important animal in Toraja culture where it serves as an important store of wealth and a symbol of prestige. In Toraja, buffalo are not used for motive power in agriculture as they frequently are in other parts of the archipelago. Rather, their sole use is in ritual sacrifice during aristocratic funerals.
