Man Who Never Die: The Phantom Papua New Guinea War Shields featured in Sunday Strip
Updated: 15 minutes ago
It was today, the first of November, readers of the Phantom Sunday strip were greeted with a rare sight. A sight so rare where the boundaries of reality and fiction collided. In today’s strip, our titular hero comes face to face with himself or rather his image, painted on a war shield of an indigenous tribesman belonging to Papua New Guinea.
The Sunday Strip is a part of the ongoing Sunday Story ‘The Man of the Match’ written by Tony DePaul with artwork provided by Jeff Weigel. Currently on its 5th week, the story sees Phantom and Diana on vacation in Papua New Guinea where in last week's strip they were attacked by a Spear shot at them by a hidden tribesman. This week sees the Phantom investigating the source of the spear and coming face to face with himself painted on a war shield.
For those who came in late, The Phantom War Shields of Papua New Guinea is actually a real life phenomenon that is represented on the Sunday Strip. The writing on the shield ‘MAN WHO NEVER DIE’ is an actual reference to one of many shields discovered in Papua New Guinea. To understand these shields and where they came from, a little history lesson would definitely help us all.
It was the time of the second World War, the world, at least many parts of it, was a warzone. Papua New Guinea, an Australian mandated territory at that time, was no different. After the Japanese attacked, Australian troops, followed by American Troops came into the defence of Port Moresby. It was there during the war, as many experts theorise, that the local tribesmen got their hands on the American’s supplies, which aside from rations and weapons, contained comics.
During the period of the war, Soldiers were supplied with comics as their form of relaxation, something to keep them out from the horrors of war. Many comics publishers, including King Features Syndicate were part of that effort. Publications like ‘Overseas Comics’ and ‘Jeep Comics’ collected various funny strips including Beetle Bailey, Blondie, Flash Gordon and The Phantom among many others. These comics were distributed in various war zones and it might have included PNG.
The indigenous tribes of PNG are thought to have found The Phantom for the first time with these comics. However, the Phantom wouldn’t appear on the shields or murals until twenty years later.
The first publication of the Phantom in PNG would be in the newspaper Papua New Guinea Post-Courier which started publishing the Phantom in the early 70s, in English. This was soon followed by Wantok, which started publishing the character in the local creole dialect of Tok Pisin. Besides both these publications, returned copies of Frew Publication’s The Phantom were distributed by charities among the various tribes.
In around 1978, a Phantom Comics was published for the first time in PNG, with Phantom on the cover announcing “MI SAVE TOK PISIN NAU” or “I SPEAK TOK PISIN NOW”. This comic from Wantok became a historic piece that brought the character and his popularity to new heights in PNG. While the series lasted for only two issues, The two times that the Phantom spoke Tok Pisin in comics remains one of the highest valued and sought after items ever among Phantom collectors.
However, the real phenomenon, the one that we are actually talking about here, started when the Phantom was being painted on the shields of the various tribes or murals that came to be found. According to Chris Boylan, formost expert on the Shields, it was in 1986 at the walls of the Banz Post Office, located in the Waghi valley was the first recorded sighting of a painting depicting the phantom. The photograph by Michael Henlen provided an estimated timeframe upon which the Phantom was becoming a theme for these paintings.
The Papua New Guinea highlands, home to many flora, fauna and cultures took Phantom as its own. Whether it was the setting, the people or the adventures of justice, it all captivated the hearts and minds of the people of Papua New Guinea. In a land of varying cultures, the Phantom became an unifying symbol that united the highlands.
This fascination with the Phantom is what started The Phantom shields in the 1980s and were still continuing till the last decade. Filmmaker Mark Eby’s 2008 documentary on the shields remains a wonderful work that explores one of the last living artisans, Kaipel Ka who had continued painting the phantom till 2008.
In recent years, this phenomenon has seen a big surge in the aesthete world and efforts have been undertaken to preserve, conserve and highlight them among the masses. Various exhibitions and auctions have been held that have surged up its value. Studies like 2021’s Man Who Cannot Die: Phantom Shields of the New Guinea Highlands is phenomenal work that is worth checking out for further information and appreciation of these shields.
In a matter of coincidence, just as the Phantom himself on the current sunday story, the Phantom comics has also made its return to Papua New Guinea earlier this year. Published by the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier , the Phantom saw his return both in form of the newspaper strip and a supplement comic book with stories from Frew Publications.
The current Sunday story brings this phenomenon of great historical significance to the Phantom cannon. As art imitates life, the worlds collide between the fictional character and the reality.
The Sunday story is expected to continue till April 2027 and with weeks left in the strip, one has to wonder where it is heading. Also important to remember that this would Tony DePaul’s swan song from the strip, being the last complete story he got to tell. What does ‘The Man of The Match’ hold for us in the coming weeks? Will there be a match? Perhaps cricket or Liklik Kricket? Perhaps we’ll just have to wait.
