Intricate masks and figures made from plates of turtle-shell are unique to the peoples of the Torres Strait, which lies between Australia and New Guinea. Turtle-shell effigies were first recorded on the Torres Strait islands by the Spanish explorer Diego de Prado in 1606, a testimony to the antiquity of the tradition. Used primarily during male initiation and at funerary rituals, the masks represent mythical culture heroes and their associated totemic species. Some masks represent human forms, others depict birds, fish, or reptiles, and masks such as this one combine the features of both humans and animals.
