MANDAYA TRIBE
The Mandaya tribe creates unique and distinct crafts wherein weaving is a craft that Mandaya is excellent. These products include the following:
Mandaya Bag with an applique mother-of-pearl sequins forming human and frog figures and straps and edges ornamented with glass beads, small brass and iron bells, colored with the polychrome method in red, black, yellow, and green.
Mandaya Hat is made of guinit wherein the designs are burned into the concave-shaped hat. In some cases, black or colored feathers are found at the back of the hat. Thongs are attached when worn to keep the hat in place.
The Ata Manobo tribe is known for weaving baskets, banig, nigo, tribal costumes, baliog, or accessories made of beads that are highly made of bamboo and rattan where it is a silent witness of the tribe’s rich culture aside from making it a source of income.
Liyang is a woven basket used for harvesting or for wood gathering. It is made of abaca, rattan, and a bamboo tree which are all harvested in the forest. The frame of a basket is a cylindrical piece of wood with a flat top and bottom also rattan strips are woven around this frame. The upper rim is reinforced with a circular band of bamboo and the whole basket is made water-tight with tabon-tabon seeds filling up all spaces.
Bubo is a fish trap made of rattan strips. The cage is about 1-meter-long, that has cigar-shaped with one end larger than the other hence, it is a cone-shaped trap made of bamboo slats that are placed inside the large end to allow the fish to enter but not to escape.
Mats are made from stalks of sedsed a wild sedge and then were dried, dyed, flattened, and boiled in red, black, yellow, or green dye before weaving having the patterns of bitudu, bineligyas, pineselangga, and megapid.
The T’boli produce some highly valued indigenous products these include metalwork consists of bracelets and solid anklets as well as weaving that has been raised to the level of art. These products provide the main source of income for many and an extension of the T’boli tribe’s culture, tradition, and belief.
T’nalak is the most famous T’boli art form, dating from the tribe’s pre-history and based on sacred practices. It is made of krungo (abaca fiber) extracted from the mature fruit-bearing, wild abaca. The fabric undergoes a unique tie-dye process where it is tied in specific knots measured by finger or knuckle length and dipped in dyes to create ornate patterns. It has a distinctive tri-color scheme; the background is painted black while the pattern is white, while it is then tinted predominantly with shades of red.
T’boli Brass Bangles are meticulously handcrafted and can be customized with the ancient baybayin. Even if they are made by the same artisan, no two T’boli brass pieces are exactly alike, making them even more unique and distinctive.
Hilot is a heavy brass belt is worn by women during festivals. The T’boli nobility wears the bracelets and anklets furnished with ball-bearings that make a sound as the wearer walks. The bells hanging from the distinctive brass or beaded belts indicate the woman’s approach.
