Boylan & Philips
Shield depicting the head of the Phantom
Shield depicting the head of the Phantom
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For sale
Yes
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Remaining
1
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Price
$7,500
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Shipping
$400.00
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Sales method
Online & onsite sale
Description
Attributed to Kaipal Ka or another painter of the Banz Style
Inscribed: “Phantom” and “Man Who Canot Die”
Wahgi Valley, probably Jiwaka Province, Papua New Guinea
Wood, commercial paint, rattan, automotive license plate. 174 x 67.3 cm.
Collected by Chris Boylan, Mount Hagen, 2014.
Bert Collection, Toronto, Canada.
Photo: Jessica Lindsay Phillips.
Inv. B-33
This is a relatively rare depiction showing the face of The Phantom, which emphasizes the text stating the intimidating phrase from the comic that designates an immortal warrior. These phrases are sometimes written in English and other times in Tok Pisin. At the base of the shield is a PNG license plate, attesting to the status and power of the clan, since they owned a valuable vehicle (even though it might now be rusted and useless).
$7,500
Each shield is guaranteed to be an original and unique work of art created in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, often over the course of genertions..
Item is located in Canada. Please check with us for a shipping estimate.
PLEASE: contact us with any questions before purchase!
To purchase, contact us through the website below.
Item details
GTIN: 171576
Price
$7,500.00
Sales method
Online & onsite sale
Quantity available
1
Dimensions
Product
Length/Depth: 68.5 in
Width: 26.5 in
Height: 5 in
Package
Length/Depth: 70 in
Width: 36 in
Height: 10 in
Shipping
$400.00
Delivery restrictions may apply:
Shipping calculator is approximate. Please contact us for actual packing and shipping rates to your location.
Shipping calculator is approximate. Please contact us for actual packing and shipping rates to your location.
Refund & return policy
Refund available if product is damaged or defective
Exceptions may apply. Please message Jonathan for more information.
Meet your seller
Boylan & Philips
In the second half of the twentieth century, an artistic tradition arose in the Wahgi Valley of the highlands of Papua New Guinea of painting traditional war shields with the image of the comic book superhero The Phantom. This derived from some seemingly inexplicable intersection of the age-old bellicose traditions of one of the most culturally remote areas of the world and twentieth-century comic book illustration, if not pop art—a phenomenon that art historian N. F. Karlins has referred to as pop tribal. The frequent text in English or in Tok Pisin on other examples—"man ino save dai" (man who cannot die) or "man bilong pait" (man of war)—only adds to the multicultural depth. Though these appear to be curiously syncretic objects to the Western eye, to the people of the Wahgi Valley they held deep meaning to the martial power of moral rectitude and the guidance of ancestral spirits.
A new book published in February 2021 by art dealers Chris Boylan of Sydney, Australia, and Jessica Lindsay Phillips of Toronto, Canada, is an exhaustive study of this tradition. Titled Man Who Cannot Die: Phantom Shields of the New Guinea Highlands, it features essays by a number of experts in the field, placing the shields within their historical, cultural, and cosmological contexts. A catalog section illustrates 105 examples from museum and private collections in North America, Europe, and the Antipodes, drawn from a research group of some 150 shields, which represent the majority of known examples.
For Wondercon, Boylan & Phillips will offer a special discount on the book and will provide a virtual exhibition of the shields, some of which will be available for purchase.
Pictures
Shield depicting the head of the Phantom
Boylan & Philips
Seller has unpublished this item.
