Table Of ContentLECTURER’S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
While I add my personal gratitude to all the publishers, and in some
cases authors, who have so kindly allowed illustrations to be repro-
duced here, I must reserve special thanks for Malcolm Kirk for his
generosity in sharing his images; he brings from the art world a quite
distinctive perspective, and to be able to see these images again is not
at all of the same order as looking at any of the other illustrations, fine
as many are. In thanking the HAU team for their splendid work, I am
particularly grateful to the contribution that Phil Swift and Sean
Dowdy have made to the presence and presentation of the repro-
ductions and to the flow of the text.
The team at HAU who have given so generously of their time and
expertise include Davide Casciano (IT and website); Sean Dowdy
(copyediting and layout); Stéphane Gros (technical supervision);
Teodora Hasegan (proofreading); Randolph Mamo (cover and image-
related work) and Philip Swift (copyright and permission work, image-
related work). My gratitude to them all, and to Giovanni da Col for
the invitation to publish these lectures in the HAU Masterclass series,
and the unwavering encouragement on his part that accompanied it.
I have already indicated my debt to acquaintances in Papua New
Guinea, and add too the many I did not know but who have
contributed to these lectures. Perhaps I can also acknowledge here
the generations of students without whose interest they would not
have been given.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO PUBLISHERS
AND AUTHORS
Figures 1–11, 16, and 68. From Kirk, Malcom. 1981. Man as art,
New York: Viking Press. Photographs: Malcom Kirk. © Malcolm
Kirk. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 12–15, 17–39, 42, 43, 60, 67, and 81. Photographs: Marilyn
Strathern.
Figures 40 and 41. From Polhemus, Ted and Lynn Procter. 1978.
Fashion and anti-fashion: An anthropology of clothing and
adornment. London: Thames and Hudson. Photograph:
Author / copyright holder unknown.
Figure 44. From Malinowski, Bronislaw. 1922. Argonauts of the
Western Pacific. London: George Routledge and Sons, Ltd.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 45. From Munn, Nancy. 1986. The fame of Gawa: A symbolic
study of value transformation in a Massim (Papua New Guinea)
society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Photograph: Nancy
D. Munn. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Editor’s note: Every effort has been made to obtain permission for the reproduction
of copyrighted images. HAU would be very glad to hear from any copyright
holders not acknowledged herein.
18 Marilyn STRATHERN
Figure 46. From Scoditti, Giancarlo G. 1980. Fragmenta ethno-
graphica. Rome: Serafine Editore. Photograph: Giancarlo Scoditti.
Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 47 and 48. From Campbell, Shirley. 2002. The art of Kula.
Oxford: Berg. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 49, 50, 52 and 53. From Battaglia, Debbora. 1990. On the
bones of the serpent: Person, memory and mortality in Sabarl Island
society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figure 51. From Figure 5, “Diagram of the ‘measured view.’” Drawn
by Carolyn Van Lang, in Starn, Randolph. 1989. “Seeing Culture in a
Room for a Renaissance Prince.” In The new cultural history, edited
by Lynn Hunt, 205–34. Berkeley: University of California Press. © by
the Regents of the University of California. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figures 54–59. From Mackenzie, Maureen. 1991. Androgynous
objects: String bags and gender in central New Guinea. Gordon &
Breach. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figure 61. From Schmitz, Carl. 1963. Wantoat: Art and religion of
the northeast New Guinea Papuans. The Hague: Mouton & Co.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 62. From Heintze, Diete. 1987. “On trying to understand
some Malagans.” In Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image in New
Ireland, edited by Louise Lincoln, 42–55. Minneapolis: Minneapolis
Institute of Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Photograph: Dieter Heintze.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 63. From Clay, Brenda. 1987. “A line of Tatanua.” In
Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image in New Ireland, edited by
Louise Lincoln, 63–73. Minneapolis: Minneapolis Institute of
Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Photograph: Brenda Clay. Reproduced
with publisher’s permission.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO PUBLISHERS AND AUTHORS 19
Figures 64–66. From Gell, Alfred. 1975. Metamorphosis of the
cassowaries: Umeda society, language, and ritual. London: Athlone
Press. Drawn by Alfred Gell. Reproduced with permission of
Simeran Gell.
Figure 69. Photograph: Author / copyright holder unknown.
Figures 70 and 71. From Goldman, Laurence. 1983. Talk never dies:
The language of Huli disputes. London: Tavistock. Reproduced with
permission of the author.
Figures 72 and 73. From Clark, Jeffrey. 1991. “Pearlshell symbolism
in highlands Papua New Guinea, with particular reference to the
Wiru people of Southern Highlands Province.” Oceania 61 (4): 309–
39. Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figures 74 and 75. From Roy Wagner, Roy. 1987. “Figure-ground
reversal among the Barok.” In Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image
in New Ireland, edited by Louise Lincoln, 56–62. Minneapolis:
Minneapolis Institute of Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Drawn by Roy
Wagner. Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figures 76 and 77. From Feld, Steven. (1982) 2012. Sound and
sentiment: Birds, weeping, poetics, and song in Kaluli expression.
Durham: Duke University Press. Photographs: Steven Feld. © Steven
Feld. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figure 78. From Gillison, Gillian. 1980. “Images of nature in Gimi
thought.” In Nature, culture and gender, edited by Carol
MacCormack and Marilyn Strathern, 143–73. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press. Photograph: David Gillison. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figures 79 and 80. From Nilsson, Lennart. 1990. A child is born.
New York and London: Doubleday. Reproduced with publisher’s
permission.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO PUBLISHERS
AND AUTHORS
Figures 1–11, 16, and 68. From Kirk, Malcom. 1981. Man as art,
New York: Viking Press. Photographs: Malcom Kirk. © Malcolm
Kirk. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 12–15, 17–39, 42, 43, 60, 67, and 81. Photographs: Marilyn
Strathern.
Figures 40 and 41. From Polhemus, Ted and Lynn Procter. 1978.
Fashion and anti-fashion: An anthropology of clothing and
adornment. London: Thames and Hudson. Photograph:
Author / copyright holder unknown.
Figure 44. From Malinowski, Bronislaw. 1922. Argonauts of the
Western Pacific. London: George Routledge and Sons, Ltd.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 45. From Munn, Nancy. 1986. The fame of Gawa: A symbolic
study of value transformation in a Massim (Papua New Guinea)
society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Photograph: Nancy
D. Munn. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Editor’s note: Every effort has been made to obtain permission for the reproduction
of copyrighted images. HAU would be very glad to hear from any copyright
holders not acknowledged herein.
18 Marilyn STRATHERN
Figure 46. From Scoditti, Giancarlo G. 1980. Fragmenta ethno-
graphica. Rome: Serafine Editore. Photograph: Giancarlo Scoditti.
Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 47 and 48. From Campbell, Shirley. 2002. The art of Kula.
Oxford: Berg. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figures 49, 50, 52 and 53. From Battaglia, Debbora. 1990. On the
bones of the serpent: Person, memory and mortality in Sabarl Island
society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figure 51. From Figure 5, “Diagram of the ‘measured view.’” Drawn
by Carolyn Van Lang, in Starn, Randolph. 1989. “Seeing Culture in a
Room for a Renaissance Prince.” In The new cultural history, edited
by Lynn Hunt, 205–34. Berkeley: University of California Press. © by
the Regents of the University of California. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figures 54–59. From Mackenzie, Maureen. 1991. Androgynous
objects: String bags and gender in central New Guinea. Gordon &
Breach. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figure 61. From Schmitz, Carl. 1963. Wantoat: Art and religion of
the northeast New Guinea Papuans. The Hague: Mouton & Co.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 62. From Heintze, Diete. 1987. “On trying to understand
some Malagans.” In Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image in New
Ireland, edited by Louise Lincoln, 42–55. Minneapolis: Minneapolis
Institute of Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Photograph: Dieter Heintze.
Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figure 63. From Clay, Brenda. 1987. “A line of Tatanua.” In
Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image in New Ireland, edited by
Louise Lincoln, 63–73. Minneapolis: Minneapolis Institute of
Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Photograph: Brenda Clay. Reproduced
with publisher’s permission.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO PUBLISHERS AND AUTHORS 19
Figures 64–66. From Gell, Alfred. 1975. Metamorphosis of the
cassowaries: Umeda society, language, and ritual. London: Athlone
Press. Drawn by Alfred Gell. Reproduced with permission of
Simeran Gell.
Figure 69. Photograph: Author / copyright holder unknown.
Figures 70 and 71. From Goldman, Laurence. 1983. Talk never dies:
The language of Huli disputes. London: Tavistock. Reproduced with
permission of the author.
Figures 72 and 73. From Clark, Jeffrey. 1991. “Pearlshell symbolism
in highlands Papua New Guinea, with particular reference to the
Wiru people of Southern Highlands Province.” Oceania 61 (4): 309–
39. Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figures 74 and 75. From Roy Wagner, Roy. 1987. “Figure-ground
reversal among the Barok.” In Assemblage of spirits: Idea and image
in New Ireland, edited by Louise Lincoln, 56–62. Minneapolis:
Minneapolis Institute of Arts / George Braziller, Inc. Drawn by Roy
Wagner. Reproduced with publisher’s permission.
Figures 76 and 77. From Feld, Steven. (1982) 2012. Sound and
sentiment: Birds, weeping, poetics, and song in Kaluli expression.
Durham: Duke University Press. Photographs: Steven Feld. © Steven
Feld. Reproduced with permission of the author.
Figure 78. From Gillison, Gillian. 1980. “Images of nature in Gimi
thought.” In Nature, culture and gender, edited by Carol
MacCormack and Marilyn Strathern, 143–73. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press. Photograph: David Gillison. Reproduced with
publisher’s permission.
Figures 79 and 80. From Nilsson, Lennart. 1990. A child is born.
New York and London: Doubleday. Reproduced with publisher’s
permission.
|Appendix I|
Artifacts of history
Events and the interpretation of images
Marilyn STRATHERN
University of Cambridge
It has been something of a surprise for Europeans to realize that their
advent in the Pacific was something less than a surprise. A number of
accounts give the sense that their coming had been expected; that they
were previously known beings “returned” or manifest in new form.
Such ideas certainly fueled the millenarianism of cargo cults in Papua
New Guinea. A further return was indicated in the future. So the one
event encapsulated both past and future; indeed the two were
conflated in so far as the second coming would bring not the gen-
erations unborn but generations already deceased, in the form of
ancestors. Or if not the ancestors themselves, than their “cargo.”
What triggered this recovery of the past in the future was the actual
advent itself: the appearance of Europeans, and the stories that
circulated about them. In this chapter, I argue that at least as far as
much of Melanesia is concerned, and especially Papua New Guinea,
Europeans initially presented a particular kind of image. Images that
contain within them both past and future time do not have to be
placed into a historical context, for they embody history themselves. It
follows that people do not therefore have to explain such images by
reference to events outside them: the images contain events. And here
Publisher’s note: We are very grateful to the Finnish Anthropological Society for
giving us the permission to publish this reprint of Strathern, Marilyn. 1990.
“Artifacts of history: Events and the interpretation of images.” In Culture and
history in the Pacific, edited by Jukka Siikala, 25–44. Helsinki: Transactions of the
Finnish Anthropological Society.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons | © Marilyn Strathern
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported.
Strathern, Marilyn. 2013. Learning to see in Melanesia. Masterclass Series 2.
Manchester: HAU Society for Ethnographic Theory.
Description:It has been something of a surprise for Europeans to realize that their advent in the Pacific was something less than a surprise. A number of accounts give the sense that their coming had been expected; that they were previously known beings “returned” or manifest in new form. Such ideas certain
