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The Town of Betis

For a person who grew up in Betis, the hands of the "mandukit" are more powerful than the might of the pen or the spatters of a painter's brush. With his hands, he can able to make astonishing curves and foils out of a hard wood. But at the same time, make them breathe as if they are real flowers ready to be smothered by bees and butterflies.

The wood carving tradition in Betis-a simple town along a riverbank in one of the Municipalities of Pampanga reflects the way of thinking of its people. This art and industry survived the rage of calamities as well as the advent of technology-continuously feeding the people in this town generation by generation. Very little is known about Betis. There were only few articles that were written about the material culture of this town and most of them only tackled the annual festivity during the 30th of the month of December. This festivity is about the tribute on the town’s patron saint, St.James of Campostella or Santiago Apostol—as called by the townspeople. But when it comes to the origin of the town as well as the world-class quality furniture the people in Betis has, contemporary writers seem to ignore the significance of the talent of the “mandukit”, the native term for woodcarver. It was only recently that university researchers started to make some documentations of the woodcarving tradition in this town as well as the grandeur of its Augustinian church influenced by Baroque style.

The Carving Tradition The carving tradition in Betis is as old as the town itself. Although it can be assumed that it progressed and gained an international reputation during the time of Diosdado Macapagal in the 1960’s when the Philippines started to become active in international trade, it was more than 5 centuries older. Even before the arrival of the Spanish colonizers, Betis people were well-known blacksmiths, carvers, ship builders and carpenters.

It can be stated that one of the major factors in the implantation of Western culture in this town was when it became an encomienda in the 1770. Being an encomienda means you’ll become a melting pot of all things Asian and European. It was in an encomienda where trades and the introduction of what was new in Europe were being given, regardless if it can be modified to the native people or not. In the case of the Betis people, they easily embraced what was akin to their aesthetic sensibilities—that was the furniture making.

The first furniture carvers in Betis were not really Betis people. During the time when religion is a means of salvation and business, Catholicism was also a weapon and a “business”. Augustinians needed to build churches by means of cheap but quality labor from the Chinese—foreigners who came first before the Spaniards.

It was from the Chinese artisans, with indios as apprentices, where the first rebulto and retablo were made. Beautification of the interior of the church was a must. And these Chinese artisans definitely knew how. Copying from prints and catalogues taken by the friars from Spain, these artisans who later became permanent dwellers in Betis taught the rudiments of not really art making but the art of imitation to the indios. These indios, who were probably great imitators later developed the technique and became their own.

Growing number of elite is inevitable. Several illustrados in Betis who were able to visit European countries brought back the European influence especially towards the attitude of taste. They wanted the interior of their houses be decorated as if they are in a monarchy. The elegant sillion de fraileros of the friars were later became the common “luklukan” of the padre de pamilya. And the maker—a Betis mandukit.

It was from this germinal idea of luklukan that this simple imitation had become a profitable business. In the opening of the Suez Canal in the 19th century, furniture making was at its full bloom in Betis. And the mandukit-he was making a full interior decoration of sala set, grand father clocks, console tables, side tables and history as well. Now, it still remains an art and an industry in Betis.

There were several fallacies about the history of this carving tradition. Many contemporary writers thought that the wood-carving traditon was just a recent phenomenon, started in the early 20th century. But basing from the remnants seen in some old bahay na bato houses in Betis, this art and industry is much older. Some say that a certain Juan Flores who was born in 1910 in Betis was the one who introduced the art to the people of Betis. But Spanish accounts and Augustinian documents state even farther. According to these accounts, the Adrillanos and Nuguid as well as David who already owned wood-carving workshops in the 19th century were well-known because of their export-quality “dukit”. Juan Flores may just be considered as an artist who relived the Betis woodcarving tradition when he won the Grand Prize Award in the Richard Nixon Bust Sculpture-Making Contest in Washington D.C in the 1970’s. With this, he was then commissioned by Imelda Marcos to do the chandeliers in Malacanang Palace as well as the interior decoration of some sections of the palace.

Furnitures that are being made in Betis are considered world-class. Most of the styles are copied from catalogues but modifications have always been the case in this town. Eclecticism is almost synonymous to "huge profit". The more elements within a certain furniture would mean the more clients that a certain showroom of furniture will attract. It is perhaps in this style why Betis furniture, although a European influence, made its way to have its own unique identity.

The wood-carving tradition in Betis, commonly known as “dukit” still exists today. It is a tradition being transferred generation by generation and has become a way of life of the people who lives here.

The Origin of Betis

Like what was stated, almost everything that is being said about the history of the town's furniture-making tradition was only derived from oral history, transferred generation through generation where in half of it was founded on myth. One story relates that the name Betis was derived from a certain species of a tree named bassia betis merr. It was said that the tree was so huge it could shade a wide area of land, which had later became the seven barrios that comprised the town of Betis today. But there came a time that the tree withered, perhaps because of old age and died. Because of economic reasons, the natives wasted no time. They applied their productivity and started to carve and made different utilitarian objects out of the tree's debris, which they used for trade. Today, part of the folklore of the town is the belief that the very foundation of Betis church as well as the carved main door, which shows Gates of Paradise and the retablo, were made out of the wood taken from this fallen gigantic tree.

But this is just a mere myth and part of the folklores of the town. The story is quite interesting and adds to the rich cultural heritage of Betis. But the real story comes from Blair and Robertsons’ book entitled “The Philippine Island” printed in 1910.

While on their way to San Lucar from Siviglia (modern-day Seville in Spain), aboard on a ship, Magellan’s biographer Antonio Pigafetta recorded an account of passing through a river called Gadalcavir. The river is located on a place along a community of Moors called Gioan del Farax. This happened in the 1st quarter of 16th century—a time when this fleet of Magellan never yet reached what was to be known as the Philippines.

Gadalcavir is an Arabic word, which means “a wide river”. The Moors were the ones who renamed this place after a conquest from the Vandals in the 8th century C.E. But the original name of this wide river was Betis.

Betis was a pre-Roman name given to the wide river lying along these banks of Iberian peninsula-the modern-day Spain. During this time, this western part of Spain that is now the present-day Seville was called Hispania Baetica-the Latin name of the place where the word Betis was taken. Original dwellers of this place were the Romans. Perhaps the world is too small for the Christians and Moslems that everywhere they go, they always meet at a certain point. In 1576, 55 years after the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in the Philippines, there were Spanish reports under the command of the last Spanish conquistador Juan de Salcedo about the Muslim inhabitants dwelling along the two major rivers in Pampanga-one was the Lubao River. And the other one was what is now known as the Betis River. The fleet tried to pacify the Moslems living in this place. But the Moslems were resistant and could hardly be defied. It was in this physical resemblance of Gadalcavir to this particular wide river of Pampanga where the Moors dwell that the Spaniards named the place as Betis. It took over a year before the Spaniards were able to pacify the place. Betis, now an independent town of Guagua, was one of the Hispanized names along with the other Pampangan communities in the last quarter of the 16th century. Pampanga was then ruled by the ruler notably named as Malangsic. He and his people were Moslems. But everything changed when the Augustinians arrived in these places. From then on, they started to build their churches. Starting 1660, under the authority of Father Jose de la Cruz, the preliminary structure of a church in Betis was built. It took over a year before the final structure was realized. This church is still the same church that remained at the heart of the Betis community. Today, it is called the Betis church in the town called Betis.