On the 14th of this month I posted blog #1603 which was a mystery mask from India. Aaron Fellmeth, a famous authority on masks, was kind enough to comment. He named several parts of India where masks are commonly used, but didn’t recognize this particular mask and thought it probably was decorative art for tourists. None the less, what he said will help direct collectors to areas rich in authentic masks. However, with 1.3 billion people, India has 22 separate ethnic groups speaking languages other than Hindi, and all of these people are displaying varied cultures, religions, and related artifacts. I think all of these separate groups probably practice masquerade.…
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Puno mask from Africa
Q: I bought this mask from an estate sale of a well traveled man who served in both Northern Africa and Burma in the war. His daughter said she can remember the mask as a child and it used to scare her. I have no idea if there is truth to the story but she was in her early 70s. I paid $60 for it. I have always loved tribal masks but don’t know enough about them to comfortably collect them. I should note that the reddish colour and white are not paints but powder. Jarrett, 1606 A: Nice mask in my opinion. You got it for a good price.…
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Tigre mask from Olinala, Mexico
Q: I purchased this in Mexico in the 70’s when I lived there. I don’t remember where or how much I paid. The black areas on the mask are actually small carved animals. It is beautiful and in very good condition. There is a small crack on the top of the mask. Linda, 1605 A: Look in the archives for mask #1574 that was posted May 31, 2019. Today’s Tigre comes from the same village in Guerrero, but it’s a lot different. Mexican mask carvers often have their own personal styles of carving and painting. I’ll give it a B+ because I’m not sure of its authenticity.
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Mystery mask
Q: I recently purchased this mask for my collection and have had zero luck identifying it’s origin. It measures 9″ across x 12″ tall x 5″ deep. It is made of some variety of ceramic clay–possibly terracotta in part. The back side includes speckling but I am not knowledgeable enough to discern authentic from reproduction but am leaning toward older reproduction? Thanks much! JC, 1604 A: This could be an ancient burial mask, or maybe a piece of decorative art. It is not a real mask made for usage by a live human. It is too large, impossible to wear on the face, and easy to damage. Having said that,…
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Old mask purchased in Kerala, India
Q: I was wondering if anyone could help with this mask from India. Any insights would be appreciated. It was bought in Kochi (Kerala) in 2008 from one of the main antiques stores in the old town, but sadly not much more information survived when it was passed on to me. The mask still carries faded but quite vivid yellow on most parts of the face and purple on the eyelids and headband. There is an indentation from the headgear down all around the face, as well as three dotted indentations above the lips. Behind the ears are two holes, presumably for hanging the mask. The back has two written…
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Deer Skull Masks Made 11,000 Years Ago
Over 11,000 years ago, people in Star Carr were carving eyeholes into the crania of dead deer, presumably using the stone tools found at the northern Yorkshire site. As of Thursday, three of the 33 evocative headdresses made by the Mesolithic-era hunter-gatherers out of deer skulls, and other miraculously preserved artifacts, are on display at Cambridge University’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Ordinarily, all that latter-day archaeologists find from the distant past are stone and pottery artifacts that don’t suffer decay. There are exceptions, such as peat bogs in which the oxygen-breathing bacteria of rot cannot live. In Yorkshire, northern England, the waterlogged ground at Star Carr almost miraculously preserved…
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Patzcar Patron mask from Guatemala
Q: Taking a look at the posts concerning Guatemala on your website, I found the one from 13/01/2018 (“Repro of Patron mask from Guatemala”). Maybe you will find interesting this Patrón, a nicely carved example, not very old, dating probably from the mid-20th century and showing a nice patina on the back. Cedar hardwood. Dance Patzcar, mainly Nahualá and around (province of Sololá). Very similar to the one presented on “https://mexicandancemasks.com/?p=3895”. For details and pics about the Patzcar family of dances, see “Masks of Guatemalan Traditional Dances, Brown and Rossilli, 2008, vol 1, pg251-276. As mention there, these dances are erroneously mixed up by some authors (including Pieper in his…
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Baga snake headdresses from Guinea Bassau
Most mask collectors also like to display headdresses as well. They are used by tribal dancers for the same purpose as masks. Headdresses can be quite tall. These three are in the 40 to 50 inch range. What I like especially about the Baga snakes is that they are perfect tall sculptures. I can’t think of a European sculpture who quite measures up to this degree of fine art… well maybe Giacometti or Brancusi. With sinuous curves and reptilian form, this large wooden carving represents the Baga Snake, or Bansonyi, a protective spirit that presides over male initiation rites of the Baga people of Guinea Bassau, on the coast of…
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Rare torito mask from Guatemala
Q: Torito masks are common in Guatemala. There is already several examples on your site. Most are big with ears and horns, frequently a visible tongue, actually relatively realistic. There is one dance where the toritos masks are totally different and very specific, the Patzcar dance in the province of Sololá, frequently around Nahuala. Here is a nice used example of this type, probably mid XXth (40ies). The front bell and colorful ribbons are very typical of these masks. They are very small, not exceeding 6.5 inches, much smaller than the usual toritos masks used elsewhere in Guatemala, that can measure up to 8-9 inches. 1599, Jean Obscure Find A:…
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2 wild boar masks from Bali
Bali is an island that represents a very small part of Indonesia, and yet they produce many beautiful masks for their traditional dance dramas and the many tourist that visit. Most collectors are familiar with them. But these boar masks are unusual, especially the second one. If you know something about them, please use the comment box to tell us a little more.
