In the literature often they refer to decompose knives or scalp knives when talking about these kind of sideknives, to cut off the flesh of a raced head.
This was not true at all, because these sideknives were used for everyday work. (Raced head trophees were left to rot the flesh off, or in other areas smoked dried).
With these sideknives the dayaks made the most beautifull carvings and artistic works out of hard materials, such as wood, bone, horn or ivory), for instance the scabbards and mandau hilts.
Also they used this knife to split rattan, and in Central Borneo it was even used to cut off the hair on their forehead.
Even these sideknives were used to cut their arms in "bloodbrother" rituals (Nieuwenhuis is writing about this in one of his quotes).
On the photo you can see how the sideknife was used to carve a mandau scabbard. The photo was taken during one of Nieuwenhuis's expedition.
The sideknife is so long because it was stuck under their armpit, as you can see.
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