Girls' pubic covers

Tidong people, Sabah, Malaysia

Java, Indonesia

Left: Donated by C. D. Martyn in 1921; 1921.18.1
Right: Collected by F. W. Tomlinson 1910–1912 and donated by him in 1960; 1960.5.3These pubic covers, the one on the left from Borneo and the one on right from Java, were collected in the early 20th century. They are embossed with floral designs and have with a loop at the top for stringing around a girl's waist. Both examples are made of silver, although throughout Indonesia there are types made of copper known as a caping. The shape may represent a heart although it is more likely to echo the shape of a betel leaf, a vine plant found throughout the region valued for its properties as a medicine and mild stimulant.

Pubic ornaments were worn for comfort, modesty and as a visual symbol denying access to a girl as yet sexually immature or unavailable. In Borneo, such ornaments, along with the male equivalent, the loincloth, have largely disappeared in favour of Western-style clothing.