Hi Ka-Hivers this is my 8th blog!
Have you ever had some things in your house or in your community that were older than you? How about a curator, have you tried being one?
Let's dive into some of the heritage in Libjo. As I share along my experience as a curator during our "Heritage Appreciation Day".
Let's diggin' it up!
This well was in existence in the year 1850s before the discovery of Ulbo Spring. It was dug up by the local ancestors manually and putting rocks on each side. The look of this well before was plainly a ground with a hole. Locals from uphill, fetch water from here, this is one of the Libjoanon's main sources of water. In recent times, the well was renovated for safety purposes.
This house was already passed down from generation to generation. It has already been renovated twice. But, the inside of this house is still the same according to Nanay Elming the inheritor of this house. The floor is still tabla (a wide rectangular thick wood) and only the outside of the house has changed.
This is a "Tibud" and it is used to store water and it is very cold when you drink water from here.
This is a "Banga" and our ancestors used this too to hold water for drinking since this makes the water cold and very refreshing.
This is similar to Banga and Tibud. But it is bigger and this was like a plastic drum that we used to know now. The water stored here is mostly from the rain and is used to wash clothes, take a bath, and for washing the dishes.
This is the mug made of metal, stronger than the cup we have now like the glass mug or the plastic mug. This mug is used to hold liquids like coffee, tuba, and water for drinking. It is also multipurpose because you can use this when you are taking a bath.
The materials used from these plates are similar to the mug. These are the plates used by our ancestors aside from those thick glass plates that have fruits designed, etc.
This is used to mix the pure cocoa. It was
also used to hold the "kinotil" (tuba with cocoa powder, egg and sugar).
This money was well-kept because this money was during the Japanese period.
This bronze has a double purpose. The first purpose is to lock the door. But, the main purpose of this bronze key is to shoo away the “ungo” or the unusual creature near the house. This is a weapon for the "ungo" and will keep the house safe. Libjo is known to be one of the places where there's an unusual creatures living and we call them "ungo" either a man or a woman who goes at night scaring people and sometimes hurts people. They have red eyes and messy hair and along with it is a bird flying above their head.
This is placed on the altar and is used to scare away bad spirits roaming inside the house. Our ancestors do have lots of superstitious beliefs, that's why.
This is a unique sculpture made of sandstone. Our ancestors kept this as this will give you and your family good health and good fortune.
This chair is made by our ancestors. This is too heavy to lift up but very durable.
This is a "Kaban" and our ancestors used this like a vault wherein important documents, money, and jewelry are kept here. During our ancestor's time, this was the safest place to keep your valuable stuff because it had a unique lock and key.
This is the "Galingan nga kahoy" for corn. The handle of this one has been eaten by the ants. This was hidden because the “payag" or the tiny house where this was placed was damaged by Bagyong Odette. So, our relatives hid this here, and also people are not using these often unlike before. I tried this one before when it was harvest time and we had plenty of corn, it's a bit heavy, but it's fun when you get used to it.
This is a "Galingan nga bato" to make the raw rice and corn turn into small pieces. Now, one of our relatives who had this one only made this as a mini stair.
A very durable yet heavy basin. Our ancestors used to wash clothes or wash dishes using this basin.
Our ancestors used to peel the corn by using this "tuksi".
This Sundang can’t be used just like any other Sundang. The purpose of this one is not to cut trees, plants, or branches. The only purpose of this weapon is only for self-defense. There are two reasons why this was made up. Because of a traumatic experience during Spanish colonization and protection from the "ungo".
Mortar and Pestle or Lusong and Alho are used to crush anything. It was very useful before because it was used by our toothless ancestors. It is also used for crushing the ingredients because there was no blender before.
The last two stuffs are the ones I brought during our Heritage Appreciation Day. It was our class project wherein we had to bring some old stuff and we had our mini-museum in the lobby of our campus. I was one of the curators during that time. My friend and I divided the stuff in our area to focus on, so that we could explain well to the visitors what's it all about.
Being a curator is one of my memorable experiences during my college days. It was tiring to keep on standing when people flocked on our sides and we had to explain again and again and answer some of the follow-up questions. It was too hot because the rays of the sun were on our side and aside from that, we had a mask on. But, it was a good memory to keep, we were able to end things well, and a great experience.
Because of our "Heritage Appreciation Day", I was able to know some of the significant stuffs used by our ancestors.
Waittt...before I end this blog...
Can you guess what's my favorite heritage?
Yay! You're at the end of my blog, thank youuu! See you on my next blog, Shalom!✨🤗