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Dak Lak Museum orated grave site, and each one accompanied the soul of the deceased in its departure. “Almost all of the sculptural arts are to be found there,” said missionary and anthropologist Jacques Doumes. The permanent installation about the peoples of Dak Lak concludes with a display of their extraordinary and harmonious weaving, including long skirts, indigo blue cotton robes with brightly colored fringes, and white shawls with lively borders. On the far side of the main display area, a second “veranda” invites the visitor to historical contemplation. “From Ancient Times to the Nineteenth Century” provides understanding that the Central Highlands, though inaccessible and feared, were at the same time a crossroads well before modern times, a place of passage and exchange for the Khmer and the Cham, while also fending off the Chinese would-be invaders for more than 1,000 years and the Kinh inhabitants of the lowlands until the nineteenth century. Unique among museums, this presentation at the Dak Lak museum, which has been enhanced by French participation, reinforces the notion of the Vietnam Highlands as a historically, geographically, culturally, and regionally significant region. My special thanks to Françoise Barrier; Philippe Cournarie; Sabine Didelot; Véronique Dollfus; Jean- François Girault, former French ambassador to Vietnam; Bertrand Goy; Andrew Hardy; Christine Hemmet; Patrick Hoarau; Do Phuong Quynh; Dr. Luong Thanh Son; Dr. Luu Hung; Dr. Nguyen Ngoc; Nguyen Tien Thuan; Anne-Valérie Schweyer; Dr. To Ngoc Thanh; Tran Van Tackt; Dr. Vo Thi Thuong; and Luce-Marie Volat. At the end of the section devoted to the indigenous peoples of the Central Highlands, the visitor is once again struck by Condominas’ impressive photographs, in this case documenting the buffalo sacrifice. Ornaments for buffaloes, poles sculpted with geometric designs, and thick steel spears made by Sedang blacksmiths are also exhibited in this area. A group of painted wooden funerary statues stands in a row in a small angular sanctuary reminiscent of indigenous grave sites. These can take the form of animals or objects, but the “mourning” figures are the most moving. These depict the last sobs of individuals, who are depicted with their elbows mirroring their bent knees and their chins in the palms of their hands. The sculptures are left to the ravages of the climate, where they are weathered by monsoons and the burning sun. Some statues are more comforting and some are erotic. They were affixed to posts in the cemetery at the edge of the village, around the palisade that defined the perimeters of the dec- FIG. 13 (above): Basket for textiles and ornaments. Central Highlands, Vietnam. H: 65 cm. Collected in 2002 at Ako Dhong, Buon Ma Thuot. Dak Lak Museum. Photo © Noï Pictures. FIG. 14 (left): Man’s basketry vest. Sedang, Central Highlands, Vietnam. H: 70 cm. Collected in 2002 at Dak To, Kon Tum. Dak Lak Museum. Photo © Noï Pictures. FIG. 16 (below): The art of adornment, part of the permanent exhibition in the Dak Lak Museum, Buon Ma Thuot. Photo © Christine Hemmet. FIG. 15 (below left): Jorai grave. Vietnam Museum of Ethnography, Hanoi. Photo © France-Aimée Nguyen Huu Giao.


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