Q: i bought this mask at a thrift shop in victoria bc. Thought it was westcoast carving, then looked online and it seems to fit with the monpa primitive theme. Saw a similar one that was nicknamed ‘joker’ on the zemanek site. Is it monpa and what sort of age would it be. It has a red wax seal or stamp in it Walter, 644 A: It is a primitive Himalayan mask.
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Beautiful Buddha
Q: I’ve had this and another very similar mask for some 15yrs. They were found in a skip! 18″ tall 11″ wide and made I think of balsa, they are very light anyway and feel furry. I have seen Balinese masks similar but very rough in comparison. Where do you think they are from and what age? The faces were bright white but years of hanging in my Scottish cottage with smoky wood burner has given them a ‘mature patina’ Ha ha! Al, 641 A: This is a sculpture of the Buddha, not a mask.
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Some Himalayan masks are blackened by smoke
Q: Just wanted to know about what type of mask it is and just about it in general. It is 26 length 19 width 9 depth cm. Jo, 603 A: This is a demon mask from the Monpa people of Bhutan or Arunachal Pradesh, which is in the Himalayan region.
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The famous Mahakala mask
Q: Here is a Nepaleese Mask from my collection. Do you know which god is depicted? Thanks a lot, Wim, 597 A: This is Mahakala, or Gonpo, the most often reproduced mask in the Himalayan area.
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Primitive shaman’s mask from the Himalayas
Q: I bought this mask from an old Tibetan refugee merchant in Dharamsala last month. He didn’t speak much English, but claimed that this mask was from Tibet and that it is more than hundred years old. I took this information with a grain of salt. To me, it does not look particularly Tibetan and what comes to it’s age, it seems quite impossible to tell, but looks a bit newer. It is very crudely crafted and quite unlike any of the other masks I saw around. Quite heavy and of hard wood. I liked it’s strangeness and bought it for a reasonable asking price. Aki, 575
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I love delivering good news
Q: My daughter was given this mask by a friend. Unfortunately she does not know any details about it. It is quite large, about 2.5 feet high and about 18 inches wide. Any help with identifying this mask would be great. Thanks for your help. Ted, 573 A: I believe this is an older and well used mask from Sri Lanka.
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Rare Himalayan leather masks
Q: Attached are some new ones I just got. The Nepalese yak hide masks are kind of odd. I haven’t seen their like before. Aaron, 568 A: I have seen a few Nepalese leather masks like the most primitive one, but never one with colored drawings on it.
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Unique mask from Tibet
Q: I bought this from a guy who called it an “African” mask. It’s a cloth hooded mask that fits over the head (you can see part of the red hood through the eye holes). It’s got a distinctively Asian feel. The cowrie shells on the face (and one hanging from a felt nose) are throwing me off a little. Something about this mask looks vaguely familiar, but I can’t decide where I’ve seen anything like it. Nothing similar is in any of my books. I kind of feel like it might be some ethnic minority Chinese wedding mask or something, but it’s pure speculation. Do you have any idea? …
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Wow! Another Indian mask
Q: This papier mache mask was found at indoor flea market. Would like to know more about it. Thank you. Mickey, 561 A: Another Indian mask! In the previous post I expressed my disappointment that Indian masks were not more appreciated by collectors…
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How do you find out about Indian masks?
Q: Here is a very heavy, 17-inch tall Indian mask carved out of a hunk of wood. What do you think… is this piece ethnographic or tourist? Nate, 560 A: Ethnographic Indian for sure. But I don’t know where in India it is from or what use it was intended for.
