Decoding the Headhunting Mission: National Taiwan Museum Presents a Sediq Heritage Exhibition

By Li Xinyi, compiled and reported

The Taiwanese film *Seediq Bale* sparked a wave of enthusiasm at the Venice Film Festival and across Taiwan. To gain a fuller understanding of the culture of the Sediq people, the National Taiwan Museum is presenting the “Return of the Braves: Seediq Bale Heritage Exhibition” (Land of the Brave－Legacy of Sediq Bale). The exhibition offers insights into Sediq culture, including the practice of headhunting, which stemmed from the belief that a complete facial tattoo was essential for successfully entering the spirit world after death. This could only be achieved through the ancestral tradition of “head-taking,” in which enemies’ heads were taken to avenge grievances and injustices suffered by one’s own people.

The Sediq people inhabit areas spanning Nantou County, Hualien County, and Yilan County, with their original territory centered along the upper reaches of the Zhuoshui River in eastern Nantou’s Ren’ai Township, particularly near Wushe. The Wushe region, with its strategic geographical location as a gateway to various Indigenous territories, fostered a complex tribal dynamic. To protect their homeland, the Sediq placed great emphasis on male bravery and martial prowess, earning the area the reputation as the “land of warriors.”

The headhunting organization and missions embodied the shared honor spirit of the Sediq tribes. Only men who achieved headhunting feats were eligible to receive facial tattoos, officially come of age, seek suitable marriage partners, and attain higher social status. Such status also came with associated traditional garments, which became more elaborate with accumulated war honors, and allowed them to assume greater authority within the tribal social hierarchy.

National Taiwan Museum: www.ntm.gov.tw