Vintage Traditional Burmese Marionette (Yoke Thé)
This vintage traditional Burmese marionette, known as a yoke thé string puppet, is offered as a decorative and collectable example of Burmese puppetry. It is suspended from a wooden control cross, with grey strings running down to the figure.
The puppet has a painted head with dark hair gathered at the back and secured with a pink ribbon. Its face is finished in soft white tones with defined features and a red mouth. The body is dressed in a yellow patterned jacket with floral detailing, a red and grey striped bodice, and a jewelled belt. Pink trousers, blue cuffs and orange legs are visible beneath, ending in white painted feet. The yoke thé name refers to the traditional Burmese style of marionette operation, which is controlled from above by a cross-bar.
Condition, Originality and Collector Interest
The strings require attention and are tangled in places, and the puppet is presented in the condition described. The wooden control cross is present at the top. The painted head, costume and painted feet show general signs of age consistent with a vintage piece, and no further provenance is known. Collectors of Southeast Asian puppetry, folk art and vintage theatrical items may be interested in this example as a decorative piece or as a subject for restoration of its stringing.