the kayapo

When it comes to food producing techniques the Kayapo are experts of the land. They pay close attention to specific plants and animals occurring in a particular ecological zone. They have an acute knowledge of animal behavior and are even aware of which plants are associated with each specific wild animal. They also have a system of associating plant groups with different soil types.

Scarification is also a part of the Kayapo culture. Commonly a scarification ritual is used on a man after he has killed an enemy. As part of the ceremony the man would receive a large V stretching from his shoulders to his navel, the men are also confined to their houses and have dietary taboos. The other quite dramatic ritual of scarification involved women sobbing and cutting themselves, sometimes causing their own death. This ritual is performed after a loss of a husband. The widowed women must then shave her head preventing her from re-marrying, participating in ceremonies or dances until her hair is re-grown to a proper length.

As you can clearly see the most common and decorative form of art the Kayapo use is body painting. The Kayapo only use two colors black and red and occasionally white. Each color has a very specific meaning and purpose when painted on different parts of the body. The black known to the Kayapo as tuk holds the meaning death or death village showing the bearer was in a transitional stage. The black paint was applied to the upper limbs and the trunk, as well as bands painted across the forehead and square cheek patches. These parts of the body are termed the biological parts of the body, and are painted because black paint surpassed the "boundary between the individual and society (the skin) and thus reaffirms the mutual integration of the two." (http://hamp.hampshire.edu). Red is painted over the black on the trunk and onto the extremities. These areas are termed the intelligent parts of the body and are painted to get rid of the spirits as well as to re-energize them and add to their sensitivity. White is used only on rare occasions it carries the meaning of purity or terminal death.

The Kayapo also use a technique known as slash and burn. In slash and burn the trees and shrubs of a small area are cut down and then burned. The fire further clear

Some topics in this essay:
Apêtê Apêtê, River Brazil, Scarification Kayapo, Indians Ge, lip plug, black paint, body painting, body painted, adult lip, adult lip plug, body paint, gender roles, age eight, unlikely painted, slash burn,