MUNDURUCU
Maluku, historically called the Moluccas, is an Indonesian island region with many peoples and languages. Famous abroad for spices, it also has rich traditions of body marking, ornament and carving.
Historical accounts from Seram and nearby islands describe tattoos associated with local life and ceremony. Geometric patterns could decorate the chest and other areas. Their meaning depended on the community and wearer.
Ear ornaments, bracelets and woven cloth added other details. Makers worked different materials into objects that changed the body's outline or caught the light. Dress could vary greatly between neighbouring islands.
Ancestor figures from the Leti Islands reveal another side of cultural life, connecting carved forms with family memory and stories. Alongside the portraits, they show a region of many local traditions, much larger than the spice-trade encounters through which Europeans first came to know it.