sartorialadventure: These Kayan women, from Kayah state of Myanmar, wear brass coils around their ne
sartorialadventure:These Kayan women, from Kayah state of Myanmar, wear brass coils around their necks to give the impression that their necks are stretched. Having a long neck is often seen as beautiful in Kayan culture. While the neck rings make the women’s necks appear long, in reality, the weight of the coils pushes down the muscles around the collarbone and compresses the rib cage - meaning their necks appear longer than they are. The women – who can start wearing the rings from the age of five - have a long piece of brass wound in a spiral around their necks. The metal is wound manually by the women and, as brass is tough, this process can take many hours. A full set of the neck rings can weigh as much as 10 kilos - but few of the women now wear a full set. Most women gradually increase the number of coils on their rings to steadily increase the apparent length of their necks.Despite the weight of the rings, the women wearing them experience little restriction to their movement. And, as the coiling and uncoiling process takes so long, the women rarely remove the rings – they usually only do so to replace them with a longer version. The coils can be safely removed even though the muscles underneath are weakened. However, many women prefer not to have them removed as their necks and collarbones are left bruised and discoloured underneath and they suffer discomfort when they are removed. Additionally, when they have been wearing the rings for a long time, many of the women say they feel they have become an integral part of their bodies and they feel ‘naked’ without them.Kayan women are usually now given a choice as to whether or not they want to wear the neck rings. Most of those who still do, do so because they see them as beautiful or because they want to preserve the tradition. It is also likely that some wear them because they attract tourists who bring vital revenue to the community. (Source) -- source link
#cultures#body mods