Aside from a few durable elements employed, like coins, cloth and an occasional wooden mask, offerings are generally fashioned of perishable, organic materials. Not only the materials, but also the function of these objects is transitory. Once presented to the gods, an offering may not be used again and similar ones have to be produced again and again each day.
The preparation of offerings is one of the many tasks undertaken by every Balinese woman. Within the household, women of several generations work together, and in this way knowledge and skills are handed down to the young. To a limited extent, men also cooperate, for it is their task to slaughter animals and prepare most meat offerings.
Many women in Bali even make a living by acting as offering specialists (tukang banten). Their main task is to direct the armies of people who collectively produce offering for large rituals at home or in the communal temple. They are able to coordinate this work because they know the types and ingredients of offerings required for each occasion.
As more and more Balinese women work outside the home in offices or tourist hotel they have less time to undertake elaborate ritual preparations themselves. This result in an increasing demand for ready-mad offerings that many tukang banten produce in their own home with the help of women they employ. In spite of this limited commercialization, the meaning and ritual use of offerings is not diminishing in Bali.
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