| Collection Number | 57 |
| Title | Rojo Meno |
| Time | 1980 Circa |
| Time Acquisition | 1995 |
| Place | Jogjakarta, Jogjakarta, Indonesia |
| Place of Acquisition | Kalinga Antique Shop, Jogjakarta, Jogjakarta, Indonesia |
| Name Painter (Place and Year of Birth -Death) | Sulasno (Wonosari 1957 – ) |
| Size | 41cm x 31cm |
| Category (Sub-Category) | Folktales & Legends |
| Current Location | Vietnam Museum of Ethnology (VME) Permanent Exhibition “Indonesian Glass Paintings: The Collection of O‘ong Maryono and Rosalia Sciortino” Link: http://www.vme.org.vn/permanent-exhibitions/ tranh-kinh-indonesia-en-us/ |
| Description | A glass paintings of Raden (Prince) Mursada with Masruh and Mashud asride the fish known as Rajamina (in Javanese transliteration Raja Meno) when looking for a talisman in Sulaka island. Raden Mursada was rejected by his father, King of Rum and adopted by a poor couple. When he was a child he caught a magic fish with golden scales which became his protector. To cure his step-mother’s illness he embarked on a quest to find a special medicinal elixir/talisman and thus engaged in adventures involving beautiful princesses, both human and mystical. The spiritual journey of Raden Mursada on the fish is a metaphor for the story of Islam coming to Java. The image depicts his journey to mythical Salaka Island, to find a talisman to sustain the faith of the travellers. Just behind the prince are two devout Muslims, Mashruh and Mashud, wearing skull caps. In some other glass paintings, there is an Arabic inscription in the upper left-hand corner commends the virtues of Islam. While the prince is a character in Islamic Javanese literature, some elements are of the wayang (poppets) storytelling and of Hindu-Buddhist tradition. The giant fish for instance resembles the auspicious makuras seen at the entrance to the ancient Hindu-Buddhist temples in Java. (Shortened from https://australian.museum/blog-archive/science/our-global-neighbours-journey-of-prince-mursada/) |