With beautiful full-color Batik cloths and extensive historical and cultural commentary, Batik: From the Courts of Java and Sumatra is a fundamental work in the field of Indonesian art and culture.Batik occupies a special position in Indonesia. The extraordinary photographs of cloths and prints in this book demonstrate why batik is the stuff of textile legend. These 71 batik designs, taken from the collection of famed dealer Rudolf G. Smend, date from 1880-1930, a time still considered...