Barong Dance (Ratu Gde mesolah)

Barong or usually Balinese called "Ratu Gde" are made and believed to protect their accompanist in a various scope like village or Banjar. It is definitely different with Barong that performed for tourists amusement. 
For example the mask for Barong Ket, although look the same it has maredly difference, the mask for Ratu Gde are made from Pule wood / alstonia scholaris (see previous story) and mostly decorated with gold and gems. There are some production stages in making Ratu Gde which ending with Pasupati ceremony to ask for the certain spirit to descend and reside and endow it with its spirit and powers. Ratu Gde dance only for a temple ceremony event as a devotional dance to God (Ratu Gde mesolah).

There is a story in the past about Ratu Gde that occasionally perform surveillance by walking around village or banjar in the night silently without gamelan and not followed with their accompanist, it is when many of the villagers getting sick or die by unknown causal factor (known as grubug) or on a certain day like Kajeng Kliwon (also known as a good day for practicing black magic). On that time the performer of Ratu Gde are in unconscious condition as the spirit of Ratu Gde have control over them.

If you stay at a village in Bali, it might be happen in the midnight, on the street in front of house, when there's a sound ... a clink sound of a small chimes and tapping sounds of a wooden teeth, be peaceful as that's a sign Ratu Gde are in duty... Guarding you!