Anthropos 
102.2007: 479-494 
Ambivalent Blessings 
Head-Hunting on Siberut (Mentawai) 
in a Comparative Southeast Asian Perspective 
Reimar S chefold 
4^^ 
s har e act * The practices of head-hunting in Southeast Asia 
the nh Certa i n formal features but the indigenous explanations of 
i(l e ^ ^ n °rnenon are very diverse. The article explores a set of 
in ^ ®^ind this apparent heterogeneity. The case of Siberut 
Mentawai Archipelago is described in some detail and 
C ^ ar act occurrences i n related cultures. The sacrificial 
Po Wers er °f head-hunting and its relationship to autochthonous 
^b eri[ P rov e to be common key concepts. [Southeast Asia, 
’ Mentawai, head-hunting, human sacrifice] 
Valgoid, guest researcher of the Institute of Environ- 
V aJ Clences > Leiden University, is professor emeritus of 
ke ^ ^nthropology at Leiden University and ex-chairman of 
atl a ^ et h e rlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbe- 
a 0u s les -" He has conducted fieldwork among various indige 
nt! "jv u P s in Western Indonesia, notably Mentawai, Batak, 
' 6c tor s ^ a ' ~ His publications include “Treasure Hunting. Col- 
n. P, Collections of Indonesian Artefacts” (coeditor with 
S» a'n!} 160 ' 611 ’ Leiden 2002), “Indonesian Houses. Vol. 1: Tra- 
^ith p j transformation in Vernacular Architecture” (coeditor 
° r eti c 2,. • Nas and G. Domenig, Leiden 2003); see also Ref- 
s Cited. 
I 
V 
r °duction 
, ls a strange inconsistency in the practice of 
in Southeast Asia. On the one hand, 
11 Poss‘Ki Certain ^ orma l characteristics which make 
tr ^t to 6 t0 .^cognize a common pattern. In con- 
^ a< ^'hu War ^^ e conflicts with neighbours, most 
pe 0D ] nt ' n § ra icis were performed by small groups 
^ e the' G an( ^ * n § u i se °f surprise attacks out- 
o ne lr ° Wn domain. They were aimed at obtain- 
° r a few heads of whatever individual was 
encountered, irrespective of gender or age. More 
over, the practice had always a ritual character. It 
was influenced by the readings and observations of 
omens and oracles and ended in elaborate religious 
celebrations in the community. 1 
On the other hand, precisely with regard to 
this ritual dimension, the ethnographic descriptions 
on head-hunting are so heterogeneous that, in her 
reader on the topic, Hoskins (1996: 40) commented 
that there is no single model of a “head-hunting 
complex” to be found in Southeast Asia. Indeed, 
there is a great variety of indigenous explanations 
at various levels which agree only in so far that 
generally speaking a beneficial influence on the 
community is attributed to the practice of head 
hunting. 2 This leaves us with the question of how 
1 For a general survey on Southeast Asian head-hunting prac 
tices, I refer to Schuster (1956), Stohr (1965; 194-201), 
Schouten Patuleia (1992), and Hoskins (1996). The practice 
occurred in a vast region from northeastern India to Polyne 
sia among peoples belonging to different language families 
(Austronesian, Tibeto-Burman, and Austro-Asiatic) and ap 
pears to have existed in Proto-Austronesian times some 5000 
years ago (Coiffier et Guerreiro 1999: 44f.). 
2 Another frequent aspect in the taking of heads has in fact lit 
tle to do with ritual at all: the personal renown an individual 
can attain through a successful headhunt. That this should be 
the case is in itself a logical consequence of the extraordinary 
prestation and is similar to what might be expected from any 
spectacular undertaking. However, in nearly all Southeast 
Asian examples, it is the accompanying communal ritual 
rather than personal bravery which gives meaning to a head 
hunting raid.