{"id":847,"date":"2025-08-19T14:53:32","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T14:53:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.lsa.umich.edu\/ummaa-philippines\/?p=847"},"modified":"2025-08-19T15:09:38","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T15:09:38","slug":"the-art-of-bontoc-basketry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.lsa.umich.edu\/ummaa-philippines\/2025\/08\/19\/the-art-of-bontoc-basketry\/","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Bontoc Basketry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Therese Cerdan<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bontoc bituto basket. Johnny Bangao Jr. Donation. UMMAA 2023-6-10. This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
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This wood and rattan basket was crafted by expert Bontoc basket weaver Johnny Bangao Jr., who hails from the Cordillera region of the Philippines. This oblong Bontoc basket, called bituto<\/em>, can fully separate into two equally-sized containers, which are used as fruit trays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Base and lid of Bontoc bituto basket. Johnny Bangao Jr. Donation. UMMAA 2023-6-10-a & 2023-6-10-b. This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
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The process of creating this basket began when Johnny collected thin, split bamboo (inuwasan<\/em>) or rattan (owey<\/em>) from his farm near Baguio. He then used various Cordilleran basket weaving patterns, such as sinaadan<\/em> and tinalidtid<\/em>, to form the plaited basket surface. Through the process, he used awls (tik, pangsedsed<\/em>) and beaters (pat-o<\/em>) to pack the strands tightly together in their woven pattern. Then, the plaited surfaces were bound to the wooden hoops at the center, top, and bottom of the basket. The basket was colored using an oil-based dark brown stain to resemble the smoke stained baskets traditionally stored near hearth fires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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