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the BETELNUT is sort of a peace-keeper in sumba. people chew on it all the time for some pep to get through the day. chemically it is a soft drug..like a mild buzz. but the cultural meaning is very important and complex. betelnuts are chewed during discussions and you are either offered one when visiting a village or similar or you bring some- this means you come in peace. in any case you should not reject it, but at least take it. a male entering a village rejecting the betelnut declared war not long ago..and the sumbanese were headhunters just 70 years past..! on the foto we see the fresh betelnut, cut. the middle part is meant to chew on. for the effect you add a third of one of these green stalk and some of the lime-powder which is in the plastic bag. i bought this carving, made from buffalo-horn to keep it. the lime causes the red saliva which make people look like they have just eaten someone. meaning: the stalk represents the male, the nut the female ovaries and the lime is a symbol for sperm. it is believed to be returning the blood of childbirth back to earth when the red saliva is spit out. i found it veeery bitter, just as you`d bite into tree-bark!