PREHISTORIC

AND

PRECOLONIAL ARTS

Human settlements already existed in the Philippine

islands in prehistoric times
Theories on the origins of the inhabitants of the
Philippines fall between inside and outside origins
Inhabitants of the islands were organized in
communities or villages called barangays
Consisting of around 50-100 families, the
barangays were independent of each other
POLITICAL SYSTEM

 The barangays were headed by a chieftain called

the datu or rajah, whose family members comprise
the elite of the village

Rock carvings discovered in Rizal province dating

from 3000 BCE, contemporaneous with the
flourishing of the ancient Egyptian civilization

Spanish chroniclers noted the timawa or freemen,

and the alipin or slaves (namamahay and sagigilid)
as the other categories of the social structure

Consists of 127 engravings of people, animals, and

geometric shapes

The scattered barangays were loosely linked by

trade, which also connected the Philippine islands
with the rest of the Asian world
The inhabitants of the islands practiced animism, a
form of spirit worship
RELIGION/ BELIEF SYSTEM
Natural phenomena as manifestations of the
spirits and deities
Rituals to appease the spirits and ask favors
Spirits are represented in nature and sculptures
Traces of Hinduism and Buddhism prior to
Islamization
The inhabitants of the islands practiced animism, a
form of spirit worship
WRITING SYSTEM
1. Baybayin Script
2. Coatigan Pot
3. Hanunuo Mangyan Script

May be regarded as the oldest known work of art

in the Philippines and Southeast Asia Discovered in
1965 by artist Carlos Botong Francisco and his
group
Declared as National Treasure in 1973, listed in
the World Inventory of Rock Art in 1985, and included
in World Monuments Watch in 1996 Also placed in
the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites
POTTERY/ EARTHERNWARE/ SCULPTURE
Secondary burial jar unearthed in Palawan With
incised curvilinear design
Lid features two human figures riding a boat
MAITUM JARS
Anthropomorphic jars discovered from a cave in
Saranggani
Heads were painted in red and black, some were
adorned with earrings and tattoo, and some were
paired with arms, breasts, and genitals
Also used as secondary burial jars

ART FORMS IN PRE COLONIAL PHILIPPINES

Recovered jars have unique heads with

renderings of facial expressions

Clothing, textile

NATURALISM/ IDEALISM AND REALISM

Body ornamentation (tattoo, jewelry)

Metallurgy Sculpture
Pottery/earthenware
Weaponry
ART AS CONTSRUCT
The notion of art as a practice separate from other
fields of human activity did not exist in prehistoric
and pre-colonial times in the Philippines.
Art-making was embedded in other spheres of
social life, such as spirituality and everyday survival.
ANGONO PETROGLYPHS

HIGHLANDS OF NORTHERN PHILIPPINES

MAJOR ETHNIC GROUPS

METALLURGY/ JEWELRY/WEAPONRY
A highly-developed art in pre-colonial Philippines
as its early inhabitants have a penchant for personal
ornamentation Sophisticated metallurgy
techniques were employed in the production of
jewelry, weapons, and other objects
CLOTHING TEXTILE/ BODY ORNAMENTATION
BOXER CODEX
A manuscript written around 1590 which contains
illustrations of the inhabitants of the Philippine
islands at the time of their first contacts with the
Spaniards
Contains descriptions and 75 colored drawings of
various ethno-linguistic groups in their distinctive
costumes

Bontoc
Ifugao
Kankanaey
Ibaloi

 Isneg (Apayao)
Kalinga
Traditionally agricultural and hunters
Resisted Spanish subjugation
Created payao or rice paddies in steps to
make the steep terrain of the mountains
and hills suitable for wet agriculture
The 2,000-year-old payao in Banaue is
most famous, carved into the mountains
by the ancestors of northern Philippine
highlanders largely by bare hands and
minimal equipment
ARTFORMS

Metallurgy
Basketry
Weaving, textile, costume
Body ornament, jewelry
Architecture
Sculpture (woodcarving)

METALLURGY
The gangsa is a flat gong made of brass
or bronze played by males and played
during feasts, ceremonies, and rituals
BASKETRY
* Hunting basket/raincoat
BODY ORNAMENT AND JEWELRY
Whang-od, a Kalinga mambabatok and the
oldest tattoo artist in the Philippines
WEAVING, TEXTILE AND COSTUME
Ifugao textile with stripes geometric
human pattern
WEAPONRY

Bulul (Rice God Figure)

A human figure usually carved from
wood representing the rice god of the
mountain peoples of northern Luzon
Consecrated in pigs blood in a ritual led
by a mumbaki (spiritual leader), after
which it is believed to acquire spiritual
powers
Used in agricultural and healing rituals
Serves as guardian of the house and
rice granary
Handed down across generations and
are handled with care and respect
The figure is anthropomorphic but
stylized and simplified
Comes in various sizes and positions

Hagabi (Wooden Bench)

A long wooden bench of the Ifugao
placed in the stonepaved yard of houses
The ultimate indicator of wealth and
prestige as only the cadangyan (the
highest class in Ifugao society) can afford
to perform the himagabi, the expensive
feast conducted to produce the hagabi
The himagabi involves asking permission
from the spirits through a ritual led by the
mumbaki (spiritual leader), choosing the
wood in the forest, carving the bench, and
carrying the finished bench from the forest
to the house of the owner
Distinct features are the slightly raised
and bent center, and the two ends called
ngiwit resembling an animal head

Fale (Traditional Ifugao House)

The original form of the hagabi called

guinulgulding imitates a goats head

WOODCARVING

The Cordillera in Contemporary Art

The people of the northern Philippine

highlands are excellent woodcarvers,
practicing this activity to produce a range
of objects, from household objects to
religious statuary