In the continuing observance of #Undas2021 with our Filipino brothers and sisters today, All Souls’ Day, our #MuseumFromHome series features the tradition of atang, or offering of food for the dead, practiced by the Ilocanos in the Ilocos region. 

Atang is usually done during Undas and on other occasions. This act of offering food for the dead is also practiced as alay among Tagalogs, and halad among Cebuanos.

Plates of food prepared for an atang consist of delicacies such as suman, dudul, linapet, baduya, patopat or balisongsong (snacks made from sticky rice or rice flour); busi (caramelized popped rice); linga (black sesame seeds); sticky rice with coconut milk; and bagas (uncooked rice) shaped in a crucifix and topped with fresh eggs. The food may also be accompanied by bua ken gawed (betel nut and piper leaf), apog (lime powder), basi (fermented sugarcane wine), and tabako (tobacco). These offerings are placed in front of a photo of the departed and/or image of Jesus, Mary, or the Holy Family during wakes and anniversaries in homes or in front of the graves, after which the family and/or mourners of the deceased may also offer prayers. 

Ilocanos believe that the soul has not yet left the world of the living during the wake and still needs sustenance, hence the offering of food as they transcend onto the afterlife. It is also believed that the soul returns to the land of the living after the 9-day wake and must be welcomed back. In instances when the deceased appears in a dream or when a family member suddenly experiences unexplainable sickness, atang is performed as an appeasement ritual for the deceased who may have been offended or disturbed. It is also interpreted as asking the deceased to intercede for their loved ones, and thanking them for warning against bad omen through dreams. Clearly, the significance of the atang for the Ilocanos goes beyond the remembrance and honoring of the dead loved ones. It connotes their view of life after death and the relation of the living to the departed.

While visiting graves during Undas are not allowed this year due to precautions against COVID-19, traditions such as atang, remind us of how much Filipinos value their relationship with their loved ones, which is still carefully maintained even as they transcended to the afterlife. 

#Atang
#Undas2021
#AllSaintsDay
#AllSoulsDay

Text by the NMP Ethnology Division and photos from MLI Ingel and MP Tauro

© National Museum of the Philippines (2021)

In the observance of #Undas2021, our #TrowelTuesday will be featuring mortuary concepts in the context of Philippine archaeology for the entire month of November. Today, we are highlighting some distinctive burial practices and traditions in our country.

Have you visited your dearly departed in the cemetery, or sementeryo, himlayan, or campo santo as we locally call it?

Though many associate the idea of burial grounds with the modern-day cemetery, our precolonial ancestors had sacred places for the dead and funerary practices and traditions before the introduction of Christianity and Islam in our country. 

CREMATION BURIAL. A cremation burial dated about 9500-9000 years – the earliest directly dated in the Southeast Asian region – was found in Ille Cave, Palawan. The compact charred stack of organized bones showed evidence of disarticulation, fragmentation, burning, and re-fragmentation before interment in a container.

PRIMARY BURIAL.  Initial burials that involve laying the remains on the ground or in a container are called primary burials. The earliest known flexed burials in the archipelago are those from Bubog Cave in Ilin Island in Mindoro dated 5000 years ago, and Duyong Cave and Sa’gung Rockshelter (4 of 11 burials) in Palawan dated about 4500-4000 years ago; none bearing pottery yet. Flexed burial position, along with seated burial, cremation, and mutilation, are part of complex burial practices that emerged in Island Southeast Asia after about 12,000 years ago. 

Burial in extended supine (lying on the back) is probably the most familiar and common interment position. Click on the links to learn about the notable 1000-year old sarcophagus burial tradition in Mulanay, Quezon Province (https://tinyurl.com/MountKamhantikSite) and an ongoing excavation on settlement-burial sites in San Remigio, Cebu involving primary burials (https://tinyurl.com/NorthCebuArchaeologicalProject).

SECONDARY BURIAL. A period after the primary burial, it was customary to transfer the bone and teeth remains into burial containers. Earthenware burial jars from open-air and cave burial sites dated as early as the Neolithic Period were found to be mainly used for secondary burial, and to bury infants. Jar burial tradition seemed to be prevalent along or near coastal regions, though it was also observed in other places even until relatively recent times.

A Southeast Asian tradition of interring the dead in boat-shaped coffins is evidenced in several 12th-15th-century Philippine archaeological sites as previously featured (https://tinyurl.com/BantonBoatCoffin, https://tinyurl.com/ButuanCoffinBurials).

Your #NationalMuseumPH has re-opened its doors to the public following the IATF Guidelines for Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila. Book your slot or explore our collections and exhibitions through this website.

#BurialTraditions

#ArchaeologyOfTheDead

#MuseumFromHome

#VictoryAndHumanity

#YearOfFilipinoPrecolonialAncestors

Text by Marian Reyes and posters by Timothy James Vitales | NMP Archaeology Division

© National Museum of the Philippines (2021)

In the observance of #Undas2021 with our Filipino brothers and sisters today, All Saint’s Day, our #MuseumFromHome series features an important burial element —the lapida.

Undas generally refers to the observance of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day every 1st and 2nd day of November, respectively. Filipino Christians gather with their families in cemeteries to pray and pay tribute to their departed loved ones. Family members clean the nitso (grave) a few days before the observance. They prepare the cleaning materials and equipment and locate the grave of their loved ones, which could be a challenging task in public cemeteries due to overcrowding. That is why burial markers, known as lapida or headstones/ tombstones, are of great importance in finding the grave of the dead family members.

Lapida are commonly made of marble slab bearing information about the deceased—the complete name, and dates of birth and death—engraved on its surface, serving as a permanent marker on the grave of the dead. Some markers include the title of the deceased, or even figures indicating the time of death, a prayer, epitaph, among others. Aside from marble, the lapida can also be made from cement, ceramic tile, or granite.

Burial spaces inside old churches is common in the Philippines, as internment inside and/or in crypts were practices during the early times, one reason is due to the belief that souls of the departed must be blessed with constant prayers—a church is the perfect place. People who were interred inside old churches were often bishops, high-ranking government officials, and prominent figures of the community—mostly members of wealthy families. The altar and floor serve as burial grounds and, in some instances, lapida may also be found along church walls, a constant reminder of the influence of the interred individual. The said practice is a way of honoring the person, making their legacy known to the younger generation and showing that they had the privilege to have a place of worship as a final destination.

As we remember our dearly departed this Undas season, #KeepSafe and be mindful in following the IATF rules related to this event as well as safety and health protocols. Check on the works of Dr. Grace Barretto-Tesoro on grave markers in the country for an in-depth look into the topic.

#Undas2021

#Lapida 

#GraveMarkers

#PhilippineCultureAndTradition

Text and poster by the NMP Ethnology Division

© National Museum of the Philippines (2021)