Pisuwe is a dagger from the island of New Guinea. Ndam pisuwe[1] or Ndam emak pisuwe are those that are made with human femur bone and Pi pisuwe are for those that are made with Cassowary bone.[2] Prior to the colonization of the Dutch in the 1950s, these daggers are carried by the Asmat people[1] and they are used only in ritual killings.[2] These daggers are usually embellished with Cassowary feathers at the pommel and decorated with carved in artworks depicting humans and animals.[1] Asmat men would wear this dagger as part of their traditional attire during customary ceremonies by girding it on the side of their waist.[3]
^ abTobias Schneebaum (1985). Asmat Images from the Collection of the Asmat Museum of Culture and Progress: Text, Photographs, and Drawings. The Museum. p. 197. ISBN09-187-2859-2.
^Muhammad Husni & Tiarma Rita Siregar (2000). Perhiasan Tradisional Indonesia. Direktorat Jenderal Kebudayaan. p. 40. OCLC47893714.
