India & Himalayas

Himalayan skull masks

I was just looking at this entertaining skull mask. Skulls are a subject for masquerade in cultures all over the world. This one is obviously from the Himalayan region. You can always recognize this because of the way the nose, cheek bones and many teeth are sculpted. It is made of papier mache which is light-weight and cheap. Most of the skull masks made for use in dance or ceremony nowadays utilize that material. However, this particular one was antiqued for sale to the tourist trade.

I’m also posting two other skull masks from page 38 of my book, Masks of the World, that were carefully carved out of wood.  Note how different they are, yet you can easily see that all three are Himalayan. The little skulls often used to decorate the tops of Himalayan masks are the same style.   Bob, 1099

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