Philippine E-Journals

The Limasawa Pot: A Bakalág (Human Sacrifice) Ritual Artifact

Rolando O. Borrinaga

 

Abstract:

The Limasawa Pot was discovered during a cultural mapping field work in Barangay San Agustin, Limasawa, Southern Leyte on 11 November 2015. Measuring 3 inches high and 4 inches in diameter at its widest bulge, the artifact is a celadon trade ware (green ceramic item) that dates back to the Song Dynasty (960 – 1279 A.D.) in China, which makes it between 700 to 1,000 years old. The pot was also embossed with a four-leaf clover design around its mouth, presumably by a native artist, and each of the four loops has writing in baybayin, the ancient script of the Filipinos. The writing is estimated to be at least 500 years old. The key words bakalág (human sacrifice) and Masáwa (place-name) that were deciphered by the author from the baybayin text on the pot suggest the pot’s ritual function and the place where the ritual was performed. It appears that the Limasawa Pot was an essential accessory item in the performance of the bakálag ritual by the ancient Filipinos. It provides the written outline of the possible monologue of a babaylan (native priestess) during the ritual. It also became a burial send-off item, presumably at the interment of the sacrificed person afterwards.