This article deals with the ritual installation of Zain al-Abedin as king
(sultan) of Banten in 1691. Various observers of royal rituals have noted
that there is a special relationship between the pomp displayed in such
rituals and the exercise of power. The nature of this relationship has
prompted a questioning of traditional concepts of power, especially those
whereby power is seen exclusively in terms of force or violence. David
Cannadine (1987:17, 19), for example, asserts that ritual is a type of power
in ilself, but, at the same time, admits that it is hard to determine what sort
of power this precisely is.
![[Banten], / [Topographisch Bureau van de Generale Staf]](https://karangantujunction.web.id/files/large/48cb37b8a5ea6c8e2ba6b4e4d3f3f80c708cf433.jpg)
