Group of Huli "Wigmen" (Papua New Guinea).
The Huli are an indigenous Melanesian ethnic group who reside in Hela Province of Papua New Guinea.
They speak mainly Huli and Tok Pisin; many also speak some of the surrounding languages, and few also speak English.
They are one of the largest cultural groups in Papua New Guinea, numbering over 250,000 people.
The body decoration and traditional headdresses uniquely identify the Huli people.
In particular the headdress is a wig made by their own hair and it represent the adulthood. At the age of 8 until about 15 the young boys move to stay with their fathers and learn to become men.
During this period of time they let grow their hair that are gradually shaped, using vegetal stripes, into its final shape.
Once the growth process is finished, the hair is cut at the base and a "wig master” creates the traditional wig.
Wigs must be created before the marriage and once completed the boy is considered as an adult.

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