KAIN LUNGGI – SAMBAS WOVEN CLOTH

Prepared by: Lunggi Maharani

7th Grade Bilingual
SMPN 3 South Tangerang

If you have ever heard the name Sambas, maybe your mind will immediately go to the name of a
district in West Kalimantan. Besides being used as the name of the city, there are also local crafts
that are typical West Kalimantan crafts with a similar name, namely Sambas woven cloth.
Sambas woven cloth craft or commonly also called "Kain Lunggi" or gold thread cloth is
because one of the materials used is the gold thread which is also golden yellow.
That said, this fabric has existed since the Sultanate of Sambas led by Sultan Sulaiman. Sultan
Sulaiman founded the Sambas Sultanate in 1675 AD and ruled for 10 years, until 1685, with the
title Sultan Muhammad Shafiuddin I.
However, by looking at the very dominant plant motifs in the Sambas Weaving, this woven
might have existed before the establishment of the Sambas Islamic Sultanate, which is when in
Sambas still stood the Hindu kingdoms. If Sambas Weaving existed during the time of Sultan
Sulaiman ruled the Sambas Sultanate or even before, then Sambas Weaving is more than 300
years old.
The existence of Sambas Weaving that is able to pass through a span of three centuries shows
that this weave has certain features that make it always preserved. The Sambas people use this
woven cloth as a complement to the implementation of traditional rituals, one of which is the
traditional marriage ceremony. In a marriage ceremony, Sambas Weaving cloth is used as a
complementary delivery item or surrender from the bridegroom to the bride, and cual fabric is
used as a counter goods delivery from the bride to the bridegroom. By using Sambas Weaving as
a complement to traditional rituals, this weaving is a friend of the Sambas people in their life.
With this function, it is natural that Sambas Weaving continues (read: must) be preserved by the
Sambas community.
The Sambas woven cloth is indeed not widely known by the public. The unique thing about this
Sambas woven cloth is that this woven cloth has two different motif elements such as the
Chinese element in the rose motif and there is also an Islamic element found in the geometric
motif. Sambas woven cloth is a cloth that is the pride of the people of Sambas Regency.
The Sambas woven cloth is commonly used in marriage assemblies, attending invitations from
regional dignitaries or kings, circumcisions, deliberations, and other events. But the typical
Sambas woven cloth that is famous to the neighboring country is now endangered.
Apart from being expensive raw materials, weaving cloth craftsmen are also diminishing. It is
rare for the younger generation to have the skills to make Sambas woven cloth; the remaining
Sambas woven cloth craftsmen are only craftsmen from the older generation.
For motifs, Sambas woven cloth itself is famous for distinctive motifs, such as lunggi, pucuk
rebung, dagin serong, dagin biasa, and cual Padang terbakar. Because the raw material is a gold
thread, the work of Sambas woven also requires special skills and perseverance of its own.
Making woven cloth with gold thread is usually done traditionally with a spinner made from
belian wood. It is mostly done by residents around the Sambas river coast around the city of
Sambas. This weaver is unique because the weaving skill is obtained from his parents, or this
skill is taught from generation to generation.
This weaving process requires concentration, accuracy, neatness, and aesthetic ability of the
weaver. So the price is quite expensive to make sense because the manufacturing process is not
easy and takes a long time, about 2-4 weeks so that the average production of a weaver can only
produce 1-2 fabrics in a month. If you want a smoother weaving, the price will be higher because
it will be more difficult and longer to make.

THE END