New book brings to light the extraordinary story of turtle shell masks of the Torres Strait

Leah Lui-Chivizhe’s new book, 'Masked Histories – Turtle Shell Masks and Torres Strait Islander People', celebrates unique Torres Strait Islander turtle shell masks that were taken or traded by Europeans throughout the nineteenth century.

Historian and curator Leah Lui-Chivizhe is a Torres Strait Islander with enduring family connections to the eastern and western Torres Strait

In the new book, Torres Strait Islander historian and curator Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe explores the masks stories from the perspectives of both Islanders and the foreigners who had travelled to the region, resurrecting their Islander meaning and purpose.