LONG NECK WOMEN

The Kayan women of eastern Burma wear brass rings around their necks to make them appear longer.

They can start wearing the rings from the age of five and tend to add more rings as they get older.

The rings do not actually stretch the women's necks - the weight pushes down their collarbones and compresses their rib cages making their necks appear longer.

The women can remove the rings but they tend not to as it can be uncomfortable and the skin underneath tends to be discoloured.

The rings are made of long pieces of brass that are wrapped around the neck to form coils.

Many of the women say that if they remove the rings they feel naked and vulnerable.

It is not known why the women started wearing the rings but there are many theories.

Some people believe women originally wore the rings to protect themselves from tiger bites - other people think they were designed to make them unattractive so they were less likely to be taken into slavery.

Now, most of the women wear the rings because they are seen as beautiful and to preserve the tradition.

Some women wear the rings because they attract tourists and tourists bring vital revenue to the community.

The rings are wound around the women's necks and this can take several hours as the brass is very tough.

Surprisingly, the rings do not significantly restrict the women's movement.

A full set of the neck rings can weigh up to 10 kilos but few women wear these any longer.