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  • Mexico

    10 Mexican Must Haves

    January 19, 2016 / No Comments

    The above mask is a female Catrin from the state of Tlaxcala Mexico is a country with many different masquerade traditions (usually called dances), and each of them features a number of different characters. Also important– these traditions are still being practiced so that many different Mexican masks are available to collectors. Because of this abundance you have the choice of various themes for your collection: types of characters, geography, ethnicity, construction material and so forth.  The following ten masks represent different types of characters used in the dances. More good news for people interested in building a collection: almost all antiques including Mexican masks are very low in price…

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    Bob Ibold

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    PreColumbian death mask of Pakal the Great

    August 20, 2020

    Reproduction of pre-Columbian Mexican mask

    December 26, 2018

    Authentic or decorative– both can be desireable

    September 27, 2013
  • Mexico

    Used skull mask

    January 7, 2016 / No Comments

    Q:  I am enclosing front and back photos of the masks.  I bought them from a trader/trapper friend in Noel, Missouri. I believe he had traded for or purchased them out west somewhere. We have had them hanging on our log cabin interior wall for about 25-30 years.  I am now downsizing/moving and am not planning to keep them.  Carol, 886 A:  You have a nice group of Mexican masks, some of which are decorative and others are real and actually used. So I’ll show our readers your skull mask which I like particularly. Tons of skull masks are made for the many Day of the Dead celebrations and for…

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    Bob Ibold

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    Unusual Mexican decorative mask

    December 1, 2017

    Good reading

    August 15, 2014

    Something creepy

    March 6, 2014
  • Mexico

    Little terra cotta head

    January 2, 2016 / 1 Comment

    Q:  This mask is from my grandmothers collection. They think it’s from possibly Aztec or Mayan era. I have researched it have come up with nothing. Please let me know what you think.  Brandon, 879 A:  From the Pre-Columbian era of Latin America, this little head is not a mask, but served some other purpose.

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    Bob Ibold

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    Mexican clay mask? Decorative or not?

    December 15, 2017

    Decorative Day-of-the-Dead mask

    May 16, 2020

    Yaqui and Mayo Pascola masks

    April 14, 2017
  • Mexico

    Mexican masks can be very real

    December 9, 2015 / No Comments

    Q:  I just lost an auction for an awesome female Catrine mask.  Here’s a photo of it; the eyelids do not close.  With commission, it sold for $1400.  I had bid $1100 and lost, and I’m very disappointed, as you can imagine.  I really wanted that mask.  Aaron, 869 A:  You have my sympathy. 

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    Bob Ibold

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    Him and her masks from Puebla

    September 19, 2016

    High-end Mexican mask

    September 29, 2014

    Another wonderful mask from Candelario

    September 3, 2016
  • Mexico

    Hammered sheet metal decorative

    November 21, 2015 / No Comments

    Q:  I just found your website. This mask is 19 and a half inches tall by 11 inches wide.  I found it in a dumpster while cleaning out an apartment building full of trash in San Pedro, California. The outside kind of looks like silver if I rub it.  The chin holder on the inside is a softer pliable material more like lead. Notice the animal looking earrings. I hang it over my toilet. Thank you for your time.  Jeremy, 860 A:  This is a popular tourist mask made by a small shop of craftsmen working in Iquala, Guerrero, as early as the 1970’s.

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    Bob Ibold

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    Leather mask from Mexico

    October 28, 2016

    Embark on a Mask-terful Journey: Oaxaca, the Ultimate Starting Point for Aspiring Mask Collectors!

    May 2, 2022

    Entertaining Mexican mask by Candelario

    July 19, 2018
  • Mexico

    Strange leather mask from Mexico

    November 13, 2015 / No Comments

    Q:  Just bought this leather mask and wanted to get your opinion as to it’s origin. It measures 9″ at widest and 10″ top to bottom with horse hair whiskers. Could this be from Chiapas?  Thanks, Lois, 858 A:  The Tzotzil people, who live in the center of Chiapas and are of Mayan descent, frequently make masks out of leather. But this one is different in design.

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    Bob Ibold

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    Good reading

    August 15, 2014

    Decorative fish mask from Mexico

    October 20, 2018

    Yaqui and Mayo Pascola masks

    April 14, 2017
  • Mexico

    Unusual Mexican bird mask

    November 6, 2015 / No Comments

    Q: Looking through your older posts, I saw an unknown mask (Nov. 2013) which resembles one I have. Mine has a bird on the front. Very light wood. Bought with another one at a flea market. It has a tag inside which has the following: S. Pedro Teozacoalco. dist. Zaaohila. Mexico. It also has the following (which I translated using google translations): “The godmother of the bride (or groom) mask. Used during the blessing ceremony.” Any thoughts on its age, or what the inscription S. Pedro Teozacoalco means? Mickey, 855 A: I asked Bryan Stevens, the most knowledgeable collector of Mexican masks I know, about this.

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    Troy

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    Catrin mask from Tlaxcala, Mexico

    December 4, 2020

    Embark on a Mask-terful Journey: Oaxaca, the Ultimate Starting Point for Aspiring Mask Collectors!

    May 2, 2022

    Far out Mexican decorative

    September 11, 2013
  • Mexico

    Devil or bird?

    September 28, 2015 / No Comments

    Q: This mask weighs only five ounces. It is around 10-11″ tall and 7″ across the forehead. I acquired it from a long time antique collector/hoarder in Central Alabama. Any assistance you could provide in identification would be most helpful. Kathy, 844 A: From somewhere in Mexico, this strange little guy is quite a character. Unfortunately, it has never been painted. Mexicans like to finish their masks with bright colors. However, they occasionally leave them unpainted for the tourist trade.

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    Troy

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    Leather mask from Mexico

    October 28, 2016

    The unappreciated Mexican decorative

    May 23, 2016

    Our enemy, the powder post beetle

    December 15, 2013
  • Mexico

    Diablo with lots of character

    September 24, 2015 / 3 Comments

    Q: Any idea what part of Mexico this Diablo comes from? I got if off eBay where I was told it had been collected in the 1960s or earlier and had been in a collection in Holland ever since. It’s made of hard wood with boar tusks for teeth. Mark, 841 A: Almost anyone will get a kick out of this oddly shaped Devil mask from Mexico. Certainly I do! But exactly where in Mexico was it made and what is it for. To the latter you could say a dance that characterizes Satan. But this delightful character could have been made strictly to sell to tourist and collectors.

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    Troy

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    Black-faced mask from Mexico

    July 21, 2015

    Pre-Columbian Indian mask

    July 21, 2020

    Useful tourist mask

    February 27, 2020
  • Mexico

    Typical, old Mexican mask

    September 22, 2015 / 3 Comments

    Q: Do you agree that this is a Mexican, rather than Guatemalan mask? Nate, 840 A: Of course, there are some masks from nearby Guatemala of similar design, but this design is so typical of many areas in Mexico. It portrays a light-skinned man with black eyebrows and mustache. The holes for seeing and attaching strings, plus the facial characteristics, are also typical.

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    Troy

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    Hermit mask from Michoacan

    August 17, 2018

    Wolf man mask from Mexico

    June 15, 2015

    Strange Mexican mask

    June 16, 2016
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Quiz - Test Your Mask Knowledge

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Mystery Mask Value Code

A - high value*

B - collectible*

C - decorative art

D - low value

* A and B do not always imply higher dollar value. Most masks get a C or D, however I usually don't post them.

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