Topossa Man With Scarifications On His Body (The Toposa are an ethnic group in South Sudan 🇸🇩, living in the Greater Kapoeta region of the erstwhile Eastern Equatoria state. They have traditionally lived by herding cattle, sheep and goats, and in the past were involved in the ivory trade).

In Africa, scarification has served as an important element of the culture of different groups.

Scarification involves placing superficial incisions on the skin using stones, glass, knives, or other tools to create meaningful pictures, words, or designs.

This permanent body modification can communicate a plethora of cultural expressions.

From Ethiopia to Papua New Guinea, scarification produces scars of different sizes, shapes, and positions to show clan identity, status within a community or passage into adulthood.