In communities in Indonesian Papua, noken is a hand-knotted or hand-woven bag. Its uses are multiple: agricultural products, wood, purchases, small animals or babies can be transported there. The same type of object thus accompanies very different moments of everyday life.
Its manufacture varies according to the communities. It can start with heated and soaked branches, stems or bark. The fibers obtained are dried, spun and knotted; natural dyes can complete the work. A plant material gradually becomes a resistant net.
The noken can also be worn during holidays or offered as a sign of peace. It is therefore not only a transport solution easily replaced by any industrial bag. Its confection conveys gestures and its circulation has a social meaning, beyond what one slips inside.
What we know
Variable uses and techniques; no custom uniformly attributed to all of Indonesia.
To go to the source
References consulted on 3 October 2026. Linked pages may be in another language.
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