BOOKS 164 Embodied Spirits: Gope Boards from the Papuan Gulf clude a central face, sometimes a fi gure or a portion thereof in linear form, a navel, and limbs, all rendered as roughly symmetrical motifs across the entire surface. Carving and obligations to the ancestors were and still are a man’s responsibility, and these boards were carved by important men of an extended family or clan. In traditional times, men lived apart from women and uninitiated boys, and their houses had designated areas or shrines created for the display of items that indicated personal or clan identity. Spirit boards were placed in such shrines. The boards and the spirits that they embodied were reminders to their owners of the presence of their ancestors, the stories and the mythical heroes connected to the land, and natural resources that watched over the clan and family. From east to west, spirit boards were made in distinct cultural regions. They are known by different local names—hohao, gope or kope, kwoi, and titi ebiha—and have distinctive motifs and shapes. Spirit boards also take a fi gurative form called bioma, where the shape of the board has one or more anthropomorphic elements, usually legs and/or arms. Each of the spirit boards is illustrated as a full-page color plate, accompanied by detailed collection history, provenance, and publication and exhibition information. Additionally, contextual in situ historical photographs show many of the actual spirit boards (or one of similar style) at the time of or before their collection by outsiders. In addition to the selection of spirit boards compiled and researched by The subject of this beautiful new book is a sculptural form called spirit boards, which are made in the southeastern part of Papua New Guinea. They are known by different names in the numerous ethnic regions of the Papuan Gulf but are often referred to by the generic term gope. The fi rst comprehensive publication dedicated to the subject, Embodied Spirits: Gope Boards from the Papuan Gulf, illustrates 136 examples of spirit boards from international museums and private collections, including the Tomkins Collection, one of the largest in private hands. Embodied Spirits is available in English and French editions, published by 5 Continents Editions, Milan. Traditionally, spirit boards were made with wood from discarded canoes, hence they often have a slight curve. They are two-dimensional carvings in shield-like oval shapes, usually carved on one side, but numerous variations exist. The abstract and fl uid designs are carved in low relief and painted with variations of red, ochre, brown, white, and black pigments. The patterns typically in- FIG. 1 (above): Cover of Embodied Spirits. 5 Continents Editions, 2016. FIG. 2 (left): Drawing of two spirit boards by A. Peacock. The example on the right is the cover image for Embodied Spirits. Pitt Rivers, second collection, illustrated volume 3, page 1112, MS.Add.9455. Courtesy Cambridge University Library. FIG. 3 (below): Spirit board, hohao. Orokolo village, Elema people, Papua New Guinea. 19th–20th century. Wood, pigment. H: 148 cm. Tomkins Collection (TC55). Photo: Paul Mutino. By Sebastian Miller
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