Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms Exhibit

During opening weekend I visited the Asia Society Museum in NYC to see for myself the wonderful gold artifacts from the Philippines that depict our rich heritage and precolonial history prior to the arrival of the Spaniards. In old Spanish texts from Francisco Alcina, the most well known chronicler of the Bisayans to Antonio Pigafetta, the scholar who joined Ferdinand Magellan when they first landed in our shores, the mention of gold was very much prevalent throughout the islands. Our ancestors, from the slaves to the nobility, wore gold, most being passed down from generation to generation as bahandi, or heirlooms. From gold necklaces, bracelets, rings, armlets, to even sashes, belts, and the hilts of their daggers were made of gold. Their religious objects from bowls to figures of deities were also intricately designed and made of gold. They would often bury these gold objects so the dead person can wear them in the afterlife. It was also a form of acceptance in the afterlife as among the Bisayans according to Francisco Alcina in his 1668 records, the god of happiness and of Saad, the resting place of the souls, once upon receiving the soul from the primordial sea goddess Magwayen on a bangka, he would ask them a question. Surrounded by the ancestors he would ask if they were that certain person who died. However if the soul did not have with them any gold or bahandi, they would not recognize them. From records we know that the Spaniards often ransacked known burial sites for the purpose of taking these gold buried with the dead.

To see the gold artifacts yourselves I invite anyone who can come to NYC and the Asia Society Museum to come and take a step back in time. The exhibit runs from September 11 2015 - January 3, 2016 and is located at:

725 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10021