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Reflection on Papua New Guinea
The gist
A 1930 expedition stumbled into a New Guinea highland valley holding about a million people.
The find still shapes how outsiders talk about the island today.
How it unfolded
- 1926Australians found gold in New Guinea and began mining the surrounding territory.
- 1930Mick Leahy accidentally reached the eastern edge of the highlands, finding lush green valleys free of malaria and roughly a million people living in them.
- 1963Bow-and-arrow battles were still occurring, described as a pre-bronze age war between two tribes in West Papua.