DepartmentAsia

Duryudana

NameWayang kulit, shadow puppet

Maker Endratmi

CultureJavanese

Dateca. 2000

Place madeKlaten, Java, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, Asia

MediumWater buffalo hide, paint, water buffalo horn, bronze leaf, plastic(?)

DimensionsOverall: 39 3/4 x 16 9/16 in. (101 x 42 cm)

Credit LineIFAF Collection

Object numberFA.2007.40.10

Collections

Wayang Kuilt: Indonesian Shadow Puppets

DescriptionShadow puppet, large male figure with black face and bronze leaf over chest, arms, legs. Central stick is horn, arm sticks are attached at wrists, one is horn and one is wood (replaced?). Figure has elaborate punched decoration over rounded skirt and headdress.

"Ki Purbo Asmoro Collection
Performer: Ki Purbo Asmoro; also: Ki Sunarna
Artist: Endratmi
Place and Date Made: Klaten, c. 2000

This depiction of Duryudana shows him as the King of Hastina (evidenced by his crown), and the figure makes appearances in lakon from the Mahabharata such as "Bharatayuda" (The Great Bharatayuda War) and "Kresna Dhuta" [Kresna Serves as Arbitrator].

Duryudana goes by other names at times, including Kurupati, Jaka Pitana, and Suyudana. In the Mahabharata, Duryudanais the eldest of the one hundred Kurawa children. His parents are the blind King Drestarastra and his conniving wife, Gendari (also known as Anggendaril. When he is growing up, Duryudana studies the noble ways of knighthood with the court teachers Durna and Bisma. At the time, Duryudana studies alongside his siblings and his rival cousins, the five Pandhawa brothers. However, the relationship between the two sets of cousins is plagued by conflict, competition, and deception. When he grows up, Duryudana becomes King of Hastina, though the position rightfully belonged to his cousin, Puntadéwa. The battles that ensue between the Pandhawa and Kurawa cousins eventually lead to a great war, the Bharatayuda." (Katz-Harris 2010)