AP PHOTOS: Papua's noken bag, the knotted legacy of resilience and identity 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.
The distinctive bag, handcrafted from natural fibers like tree bark or leaves, is woven and knotted with threads of Papuan heritage.
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 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.
