There are many different ethnics in Indonesia and those ethnics have different cultures and traditions. One of the region in Indonesia with many unique traditions is Papua, from different kinds of traditional clothes to traditional weapons. The traditional weapon in Papua have similarities with weapons from other regions in Indonesia. However the shapes are different and more unique than other places.
Spear
One of the traditional weapon in Papua is the spear. This weapon is usually used by the indigenous people in Papua to hunt animals for food. There are also different kinds of spears in Papua, spears with one edge and two edges. Every tribes in Papua also have a different kinds of spear, but the similarity is, all of them do not use iron as the edge of their spear. Instead they use stone and wood as the materials of their spear.
Bow and Arrow
Bows and Arrows are one of the traditional weapon in Papua. When we think about the weapon of the tribes in Papua, we usually think of a bow and arrow. It is indeed one of the typical weapon in Papua. The Papuan tribes usually use this weapon as their main weapon in hunting animal. However, they also use this weapon in war.
The Papuan tribes usually use materials from the nature to craft this weapon. They usually use a bamboo or wood as the main material for the arch. While for the rope of the bow, they use rattan. For the arrow, they usually use bamboo, wood, or the bones of kangaroo.
Stone Axe
Stone axe is an ancient weapon that human have been using since the dawn of the stone age. For the Papuan tribes, stone axe is one of their traditional weapon in Papua. Although it sounds pretty simple, but the stone axe of the Papuan tribes is quite complicated. The edge of the stone axe is usually oval and framed with weavings from wood fiber and orchid. They usually use the stone axe for cutting and gouging.
Dagger
Papua also have a dagger as one of their traditional weapon. However, the Papuan dagger is different and unique, because it is made of Cassowary bird or a Bamboo. The bones that are being used for this dagger is usually the leg bone of the cassowary. Not only that, the feather of the cassowary bird is also used for the handle of the dagger as one of the ornaments in the dagger.
