Skeleton Men of the Bugamo Tribe, Chimbu Province – Papua New Guinea

Three Chimbu Skeleton Men of the Bugamo Tribe walking like zombies, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Like Zombies Walking
With their bodies painted in white clay and ash, Chimbu Skeleton Men of the Bugamo Tribe in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea face their own fear of ghosts while terrifying their superstitious foes.

What better way to conquer your fears than by facing and embodying them?

The Bugamo Tribe – one of the more than a thousand cultural groups that exist in Papua New Guinea – live in Chimbu (Simbu) Province, high in the mountainous central highlands. Completely unknown to outsiders until the mid-1900s, elders tell stories about their first sighting of European missionaries – and thinking they were ancestor spirits. For generations, tribal groups fought with their neighbours over lands or imagined insults, and families still pay tribute to lost members. People lived traditional lives, looking after their pigs and crops, and traded with pigs, pig tusks, kina shells, stone axes, and feathers.

Little is known about the tradition behind the Skeleton Men’s full body paint. The story I like best is that “the ancestors were scared to go into the woods to hunt, gather and garden, because they believed a ghost that lives in the mountain will come down and devour them.” The men painted themselves like skeletons to frighten the ghost, and so were able to go about their business in peace.

Most Highland tribal groups were/are Animist, believing that spirits inhabit the land, animals, inanimate objects, plants, and rocks all around them. They worship their ancestors, and believe in masalai, or evil spirits, and the practice of puripuri (sorcery). So, according to other stories, an added bonus of the skeleton body paint is that it terrifies superstitious enemies!

Today, Bugamo dancers paint bones and skulls on their bodies to prepare for a sing sing – a festival of culture, music and dance – rather than for tribal war, and one of the silent story-dances they enact tells the tale of the brave hunters who rescued their children from the ghost, and performed a magic spell to scare it away.

I was travelling in Papua New Guinea with photographer  Karl Grobl from Jim Cline Photo Tours and a small group of photography enthusiasts. We arrived in Paiya  Village a day before their annual sing sing for a private session with three Asaro Mudmen (see: Asaro Mudmen), three Huli Wigmen (see: Huli Wigmen), and three Chimbu Skeleton Men. We watched and photographed as they applied their traditional face- and body-paint.

These three tribal groups couldn’t have been more different: unlike the formidable and glowering Huli and the quiet, retiring Asaro, the Skeleton men we worked with were a lot of fun. Two of them spoke a little English, making interactions with them easier. When they aren’t entertaining curious tourists, these men grow and market Highland coffee in their rugged, but fertile province.

Come watch as they get ready:

Bugamo men shaving each other

The Shave
The Bugamo men need a clean canvas for their skull-painting, so step one is a head shave.

Bugamo men shaving each other

Preparatory Shaving
That was a bare razor blade, so I made sure I didn’t distract them!

Portrait: clean-shaven Bugamo man, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Portrait: A Smiling Blank Canvas
Clean-shaven and ready!

Bugamo man with painting twig and a pot of white paint, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

White Clay Paint
Traditionally, the white “paint” was sourced from clay; today it is more likely to be acrylic, bought from the local markets. The “brush” is a soft twig with one end chewed.

A Bugamo man crafting a loin guard from grass, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Building a Loin-Guard
The only piece of costume the Bugamo men wear, outside of their body paint, …

A Bugamo man crafting a loin guard from grass, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Building a Loin-Guard
… is a brief loin guard which they craft from the leaves and grasses in the surrounding jungle.

Bugamo men painting each other

Face Paint
The whole process of getting ready took about two hours, …

Bugamo men painting each other, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Painting Skeletons
… but the men had fun with it.

Bugamo men painting each other, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Painting Skeletons
The bone structure starts to take form!

Bugamo men painting Skeletons on each other, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Black and White
Once the black ash (or acrylic) is introduced, the skeletons really start to take shape …

Portrait of a Skeleton Man, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Portrait of a Skeleton Man
… and it is easy to see the men as frightening rather than friendly.

Three Bugamo Skeleton men, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeletons on the Green
This tribal tradition pre-dates any contact with the outside world, …

Three Bugamo Skeleton men, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Soulless Skeletons
… so their vacant faces and lumbering postures owe nothing to our Hallowe’en costumes or Hollywood depictions of zombies.

Bugamo Skeleton hands, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeleton Hands

Skeleton men in the doorway of a hut, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeletons in a Doorway
It is hot and dark in the surrounding jungle, … 

Skeleton men in the doorway of a hut, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeletons in Character
… we move to a traditional hut …

Skeleton man in the window of a hut, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeleton in a Window
… to use it as a backdrop.

Three Bugamo Skeleton men, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Like Zombies Walking
The Skeleton Men move silently …

Three Bugamo Skeleton men, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Like Walking Dead
… like soulless zombies.

Three Bugamo Skeleton men, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Lumbering Skeletons
It is easy to see how these creatures could strike fear into the hearts of their opponents.

Portrait of a Bugamo Skeleton man in reflective sunglasses, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Crossing Cultures
As a nod to the “modern world”, one of our Skeleton Men borrows and models a set of sunglasses.

Portrait of a Bugamo Skeleton man in a hooded jacket, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Skeleton on the Run
But, tribal tensions are still very real. One of our models hides himself in a hooded jacket before heading through the potentially hostile territory of town.

Papuan children waving, Paiya Village Papua New Guinea

Seeing us Off
The local children follow us back to our transport and wave us off.

I find it fascinating that a culture that was isolated for so long, and that in most ways is so different from ours, has nevertheless come up with symbolism we recognise immediately. Some archetypes are, indeed, universal.

Text: Happy Rambling

Until next time,

Happy Rambling! 

Pictures: 17August2017

  • Karl Grobl - March 21, 2022 - 2:20 am

    Another awesome recap with fantastic images, it’s so much fun to see and read your blog entries, thanks for taking the time to do all the research, write it all up and cap it off with great shots to illustrate it all! Bravo Ursula!ReplyCancel

    • Ursula - March 21, 2022 - 2:23 am

      Thanks so much , Karl! That was such a great trip.ReplyCancel

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