MAY,John., Handmade Houses and Other Buildings. The world of Vernacular Architecture. Edit. Thames & Hudson. 2010.
p.162-163. "Among the primitive constructions developed in Papua New Guinea by the Abelam people, the Korambos or houses of the spirits, are undoubtedly their most outstanding achievements. These spectacular houses are scattered throughout the basin of the Sepik River, the most important in the world. country, which extends inland from the northeast coast.
The main material for the construction of these works is bamboo, which grows quickly in the place (mountainous areas mostly covered by tropical forest in the current district of Maprik) and is easy to collect, without needing an abundant hand of construction site. These bamboo poles for the structure are joined with rattan (a type of climbing palm), using sago palm nerves for the entrance (a palm tree with large leaves, with ovoid fruits, whose trunk is shaped like a tuber from which a starch is extracted). and sago palm leaves for the cover.
The popular Abelam villages (composed of the different groups that dominate the region, with about 42,000 members), are the most enthusiastic builders of these spirit houses, which dominate the different localities or villages.
Its construction is carried out using a large inclined ridge beam, a structure of rafters (poles or slats that are crossed into the beams to form floors and ceilings), a second layer of bamboo poles that is added above the rafters, attached to an inclined ridge or ridge beam, which is then covered with straw. The buildings are A-shaped, with acuminate roofs (which end in a point), focusing their greatest expressive flow on the facades decorated with elaborate polychrome paintings. These ceremonial houses, which measure more than 30 m. long and about 18 m. high, they are the center of tribal life, showing a prominent presence in the entire town.
The KorAmbos (so called in popular language) are considered temples of memory of ancestors, spirits and gods, being used for different ceremonies. The interior is adorned with wood carvings and sculptures; intricate drawings of very bright colors are painted on the facades. The ornamental images are complex associations of the human body with the sacred, with animals and with the cult of the yam (which symbolizes food and fertility). The interior of the building, which is accessed by crawling on the floor, is hierarchically structured to carry out a ritual “journey” through the house of the spirits, with four chambers in the last of which play musical instruments that provide “voice” to said house."
