EN
The subject of the paper is a comparative analysis of the relation between a culturally conditioned physical modification of the female body and its aesthetic and socio-cultural function in the life of three selected cultures. The phenomenon of adornment is analysed in the context of the social status of women, local myths and cultural traditions. Specific manifestations of body adornment and its variability are presented as a means contributing to the functioning of the society, integrity of cultural traditions and demonstration of the social status of members of a given society. Adornment and its function in the society are researched on the examples of foot binding of young girls in the traditional Chinese culture, optical lengthening of women’s necks in the Kayan ethnic group and lip-plates inserting into women’s lips in the Mursi tribe. When analysing the adornment connected with women´s physical suffering we also pay attention to its relativity when considered from the gender perspective. Different aspects of adornment are mapped in specific cultural and historic context on the background of values and standards of the researched cultures.