﻿518 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1943 
  

  

  live 
  Indonesians 
  lack 
  the 
  ability 
  to 
  manufacture 
  articles 
  of 
  metal. 
  

   Pottery, 
  though 
  undoubtedly 
  a 
  very 
  ancient 
  craft, 
  is 
  poorly 
  done. 
  It 
  

   appears 
  that 
  the 
  ready 
  availability 
  of 
  bamboo 
  and 
  gourd 
  containers 
  in- 
  

   hibited 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  clay 
  vessels 
  in 
  the 
  area. 
  Matwork 
  and 
  

   basketry 
  and 
  wood 
  carving 
  are 
  universal 
  handicrafts, 
  practiced 
  by 
  

   even 
  the 
  lowliest 
  tribes. 
  The 
  highest 
  development 
  of 
  material 
  culture 
  

   occurs, 
  however, 
  in 
  metal 
  and 
  woven 
  artifacts, 
  the 
  finest 
  of 
  all 
  Indones- 
  

   ian 
  products 
  being 
  the 
  ceremonial 
  krisses 
  and 
  the 
  beautifully 
  batikked 
  

   and 
  ikatted 
  (tie-dyed) 
  textiles. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  primitive 
  peoples 
  wear 
  bark-cloth 
  loin 
  wrappings, 
  al- 
  

   though 
  in 
  New 
  Guinea 
  even 
  these 
  scanty 
  coverings 
  are 
  dispensed 
  

   with 
  in 
  some 
  districts. 
  The 
  loincloth 
  for 
  men 
  and 
  the 
  short 
  kilt 
  for 
  

   women 
  carry 
  over 
  into 
  many 
  tribes 
  where 
  woven 
  fabrics 
  are 
  used, 
  

   but 
  the 
  standard 
  costume 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  advanced 
  regions 
  consists 
  of 
  a 
  

   sarong 
  and 
  blouse 
  for 
  women, 
  and 
  a 
  sarong 
  or 
  trousers 
  and 
  shirt 
  for 
  

   men, 
  all 
  made 
  from 
  either 
  locally 
  woven 
  material 
  or 
  trade 
  cloth. 
  Body 
  

   ornaments 
  are 
  most 
  elaborate 
  on 
  intermediate 
  levels 
  of 
  culture 
  — 
  

   among 
  the 
  earlier 
  Malay 
  peoples 
  of 
  Borneo, 
  Celebes, 
  and 
  Sumatra, 
  for 
  

   instance 
  — 
  and 
  decrease 
  in 
  quantity 
  and 
  variety 
  on 
  either 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  

   cultural 
  spectrum, 
  among 
  the 
  most 
  primitive 
  and 
  the 
  most 
  civilized 
  

   groups. 
  The 
  most 
  popular 
  decorations 
  are 
  headdresses, 
  ear 
  pendants, 
  

   necklaces, 
  and 
  arm 
  and 
  leg 
  rings. 
  

  

  Artificial 
  mutilation 
  of 
  the 
  body, 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  beautification 
  

   and 
  sometimes 
  with 
  social 
  and 
  religious 
  implications, 
  reaches 
  an 
  

   amazing 
  development 
  in 
  Indonesia. 
  Virtually 
  universal 
  are 
  ear 
  

   piercing, 
  often 
  involving 
  extreme 
  distension 
  of 
  the 
  lobes 
  and 
  incision 
  

   of 
  the 
  upper 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  ear 
  as 
  well, 
  and 
  filing 
  of 
  the 
  front 
  teeth, 
  

   either 
  to 
  points, 
  or 
  horizontally, 
  or 
  with 
  grooves 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  surface. 
  

   Almost 
  as 
  prevalent 
  is 
  mutilation 
  of 
  the 
  male 
  sex 
  organ. 
  The 
  older 
  

   practice 
  is 
  supercision, 
  or 
  splitting 
  the 
  upper 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  prepuce 
  

   without 
  removing 
  any 
  flesh. 
  Evidently 
  more 
  recent, 
  and 
  largely 
  

   confined 
  to 
  Mohammedan 
  regions, 
  is 
  true 
  circumcision, 
  or 
  cutting 
  off 
  

   the 
  prepuce 
  entirely. 
  Incision 
  of 
  the 
  female 
  genitals 
  is 
  so 
  closely 
  

   coextensive 
  with 
  circumcision 
  that 
  it 
  would 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  later, 
  and 
  

   perhaps 
  associated, 
  practice. 
  A 
  few 
  tribes 
  in 
  Borneo 
  and 
  Celebes 
  

   pierce 
  the 
  penis 
  for 
  the 
  insertion 
  of 
  knobbed 
  rods 
  or 
  similar 
  devices, 
  

   the 
  purpose 
  being 
  purely 
  erotic 
  — 
  to 
  augment 
  the 
  sensation 
  of 
  women 
  

   in 
  coitus. 
  Tattooing 
  is 
  now 
  confined 
  mainly 
  to 
  the 
  less 
  advanced 
  

   places, 
  but 
  formerly 
  was 
  much 
  more 
  widespread 
  in 
  the 
  archipelago. 
  

   Borneo, 
  incidentally, 
  is 
  probably 
  the 
  greatest 
  tattooing 
  region 
  in 
  

   the 
  world. 
  The 
  foregoing 
  are 
  the 
  principal 
  forms 
  of 
  bodily 
  mutila- 
  

   tion 
  in 
  the 
  Indies. 
  Sporadic 
  occurrences 
  of 
  artificial 
  head 
  deforma- 
  

   tion, 
  scarification 
  by 
  burning 
  and 
  cutting, 
  body 
  painting 
  and 
  stippling 
  

   with 
  resin, 
  and 
  hair 
  bleaching 
  with 
  lime 
  complete 
  the 
  list, 
  except 
  for 
  

   nose 
  piercing, 
  which 
  is 
  confined 
  to 
  New 
  Guinea. 
  

  

  