Indonesia: A 'Rampok Makan' or elaborately-staged tiger fight in Java, mid-19th century. Lithography by Louis Henri Wilhelmus Merckes de Stuers from 'De Indische Archipel', Den Haag, 1876

Rampok Macan were Javanese ceremonies which centered upon the slaying of tigers, perhaps as a symbolic way for humans to confirm their dominance over nature, but also to affirm the supremacy of the sultan, raja or ruler at the centre of the mandala or circle of power.

The tigers were not sacrificed, per se, but rather forced into combat that virtually guaranteed their deaths—either against spear-wielding humans or, far more spectacularly, water buffalos.

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