Mummification was reserved for the patriarch only, and each female member of the patriarch’s family had to cut off a finger to show respect to the deceased.

Indigenous tribes living in remote areas of Papua New Guinea have a unique way of preserving their ancestors: smoking them. The special thing is that these mummies are almost intact after hundreds of years of preservation.

Today, this method of smoking and embalming has been lost, but the Dani still preserve a few bodies as a sign of respect for their ancestors. After becoming more widely known to the modern world and attracting a large number of visitors, the Dani have introduced a part of their special embalming culture.

Not only that, the Dani people also held mock battles with the Lani and Yali people to honor the longevity and strength of Papua. The Dani people were accidentally discovered by zoologist Richard Archbold during a survey of Papua in 1938.

Dani men wear traditional costumes, face paint and Koteka “loincloths”. Women wear skirts woven from orchid fibres decorated with straw.

According to tradition, if a patriarch dies, he or she is smoked and embalmed. Each female member of the family is then forced to cut off a finger to show respect to the patriarch.