Liem Soen Tjaij (Tjay)

This sarong was made in an Indo-Chinese workshop for the Indo-Chinese or Indo-European market. The repeating cranes along the badan, or body of the sarong, are decidedly Chinese in origin, while the kepala bouquet is a direct response to European floral still-lifes.

The signature on this example, Liem Soen Tjaij, is preceded by the Malay word njonja (for “Mrs.”), here separated into njo and nja at the far upper right. Chinese batik artists with Europeanized names had received the status of Gelijkgestelden (or “equal”) from the colonial Dutch government. This practice, introduced in 1910, gave chosen artisans improved trading benefits and additional rights.