These powerful images capture the spear-wielding tribes of Papua new Guinea who believe they are possessed with the spirit of the crocodile. They show how the Kangunaman clansmen scar their backs to resemble reptile scales while the Huli Wigmen wear elaborate headdresses to signal they are ready for battle. (Photo by Trevor Cole/Media Drum World)

Every year, participants in the Burning Man Festival descend on the playa of Nevada's Black Rock Desert to form a temporary city – a self-reliant community populated by performers, artists, free spirits, and more. Last week, an estimated 68,000 people came to Burning Man 2013 from all over the world to dance, express themselves, and take in the spectacle. Gathered below are some of the sights from the festival, which lasted a week and came to its conclusion yesterday

A Haka is performed before the ceremonial departure of the 'vaka' or traditional canoes ahead of their cross-Pacific voyage from Viaduct Harbour on April 13, 2011 in Auckland, New Zealand. Powered by sun and wind only, the 15,000 nautical mile journey to Hawaii via French Polynesia will set off on April 15, aiming to raise awareness of environmental issues such as ocean noise pollution, acidification and anoxic waters, whilst recapturing traditional Pacific voyaging. The votyage is named “Te Mana o Te Moana” meaning “The Spirit of the Sea”. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)

A devotee of the Chinese Ban Tha Rue shrine walks with guns pierced through his cheeks during a procession celebrating the annual vegetarian festival in Phuket, Thailand, October 17, 2015. The festival, featuring face-piercing, spirit mediums and strict vegetarianism celebrates the local Chinese community's belief that abstinence from meat and various stimulants during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar will help them obtain good health and peace of mind. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

A reveller (R), dressed as “Diablos de Luzon” (Luzon Devils), stands next to a person dressed as a “Mascaritas” during carnival celebrations in the village of Luzon, Spain, February 6, 2016. The “Diablos” cover themselves in a mixture of soot and oil and adorn their heads with black-stained bull horns as they parade throughout the village with cowbells clanging around their waists to expel the evil spirits. (Photo by Sergio Perez/Reuters)

A Hong Kong Vegetarian Society activists lies on a giant plate alongside oversized peas, carrots and cutlery during a protest rally in the tourist district of Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, China, 23 December 2015. The activists urged passers-by to extend the holiday spirit to animals and to give thoughts to the cruelty inflicted on animals in meat productions. (Photo by Jerome Favre/EPA)

A Balinese Hindu blows fire, during a parade carrying Ogoh-ogoh effigies symbolising evil spirits, during a ritual before Nyepi, the day of silence, in Palembang, South Sumatra province, Indonesia March 8, 2016. Nyepi is a day of silence for self-reflection celebrating the Balinese Hindu new year, where people may not use lights, light fires, work, travel nor enjoy entertainment. (Photo by Darren Whiteside/Reuters)

A woman browses through kimonos for sale at Boroichi flea market in Tokyo December 15, 2014. In the 16th century, Boroichi was a place for farmers to buy and sell rags, known as boro, for mending clothes and weaving sandals. Now in its 436th year, the original spirit lingers, with about 700 stands hawking fabric, used clothes and piles of rags. Others sell kitchen tools, pottery, seaweed and spices. About 200,000 people flock to the market, which is only open for four mid-winter days a year – two in December and two in January. (Photo by Thomas Peter/Reuters)