AP PHOTOS: Papua's noken bag, the knotted legacy of resilience and identity

JAYAPURA, Indonesia (AP) — The woman carries bananas, yams and vegetables in a knotted bag on her head as she wanders through a market in a suburban area of Jayapura in eastern Indonesia.

Even in the Papua capital and bigger cities of the province, a noken bag where people carry their daily essentials is a common sight.

The distinctive bag, handcrafted from natural fibers like tree bark or leaves, is woven and knotted with threads of Papuan heritage. The U.N. cultural agency UNESCO recognized the traditional bag as needing urgent safeguarding in 2012 because there are fewer crafters making noken and more competition from factory-made bags.

Crafter Mariana Pekei sells her handmade bags daily in Youtefa market in Jayapura, along with other women from her village.

“It is difficult to craft from the tree bark," Pekei said.

They collect the raw materials from melinjo trees or orchids, facing dangers like mosquitoes in the forest. They then process the material into thread fibers, including by spinning the fibers together in their palms and on their thighs, which can cause wounds and scar their skin.

“If it’s made of yarn, we can craft, knot it directly with our hands,” Pekei said.

The price of noken depends on the material as well as the craftsmanship. A small bag can be made in a day, but the bigger ones require more creativity from the maker and more precision and patience.

Sometimes, the noken is colored by using natural dyes, mostly light brown or cream with some yellowish brown.

“Those are the color of Papuan people and the Papuan land,” Pekei said.

With its seemingly simple yet intricate winding technique and the symbolism it holds, the noken has become a valuable item passed down from generation to generation.

For people from outside Papua, noken are an always sought-after souvenir, which can be found easily at the market or the souvenir stores. Despite the high transportation costs, crafters often journey from their remote villages to Jayapura, determined to sell their noken and share their craft with the city.

But more than just a practical tool for carrying goods or souvenir, Pekei said that a noken serves as a powerful cultural symbol, representing the resilience, unity, and creativity of the Papuan people.