Banc Hagabi des Ifugaos
Ifugao's Hagabi bench
Philippines
History
The Hagabi bench, from Ifugaos of Luzon. A status symbol, rich historically.....In a dark read wood, mahogony from the Philippines (shorea negrosensis) length 4,04 m.
Despite its apparent lightness, this piece is a dugout of more than 100 kilos, which has undergone three local restorations (or repears) casualty bombings (carpet bombings) and other shellings in 1945, for the capture of General Yamashita (the tigre of Malaysia).
This bench comes from Kiangan where the general was captured (see Google : more on this but not many photos, see Hagabi bench Ifugao) or (Hagabi Meyer) it is him ears intact photographed in 1889 by A. Schadenberg (what age did he have?). No photos in colour of the style, all in sepia or black and white end of XIXth century. It would be interesting to do an examination dendrochronology of this bench of Kadangian to find out about the year in which the tree trunk has been transformed in Hagabi as the image out of its chrysalis of wood.
After many research, it shows that there are no photographs of ancient hagabi except for the stone bench of Kiangan, of which bits were put back together. This suggests that this one is the only remaining example after the terrible bombings of August 1945. The inhabitants call the region « the Million dollar mountain » in relation to the tonnes of munitions dumped over this splendid region for the end of the Pacific War.
D.H.
Hagabi
In order for an ifugao to be considered a member of the upper class (kadang-yan) he must organize and pay for a public ceremony which involves several weeks of nightly dancing and feasting climaxed by a number of full days of eating and drinking. Then, having thus established his and his family`s right to this title, he must validate that right by giving another feast called the hagabi, also the term for a large wooden bench which is the ultimate symbol of Kaangyan rank. The form of the hagabi appears on spoon handles and coffins, and it roughly approximates the shapes of trinket boxes, priests´ boxes, and carved segments of decorated shelves found in the homes of wealthy families. The two stylized heads carved at either end of the bench are called Ngiwit and represent the head of a pig, but Baguilat (1955:108) states that an earlier version of the bench was called "Guinulgulding, which means goat-like, as the two ends of the seat or couch resembled the heads of goats".
Hagabi are only carved in southern Ifugao, in the Kiangan-Lagawe area, where they are placed in the yard near the house of the owner. The carving and installation of a Hagabi require considerable expenditure of funds and energy. Before carving begins priests determine whether the omens are good; if they are, wood carvers are sent to the forest to select a large Narra or Ipil tree and to carve the Hagabi. This task takes considerable time. Although they are not paid directly for their services, workers are generously supplied with food and drink until the carving is completed. The tree selected is often at a great distance from the owner's house and the transfer of the Hagabi from the carving site to the house is a difficult task. Its huge size and weight necessitate large numbers of carriers, but it is transported amid general merrymaking, considerably enhanced by generous supplies of wine and food at each stop along the way. After arrival at the owner's house, three days of celebration are spent eating, drinking, and dancing to mark the arrival and installation of the Hagabi at the house.
Ifugao wealth and prestige are measured largely through the ownership of real property, especially rice fields. Hagabi feasts are generally held at a tie of year when rice is scarce, i.e., before the new harvest, a time when many members of the community are short of food. Prestige ceremonies of this kind, therefore, not only affirm the status of the host, but provide the opportunity to disperse food which is sorely needed.