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Fasnet Biss Mask

TITLE: Fasnet Biss Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Europe
COUNTRY: Germany
SUBREGION: Rottweil
ETHNICITY: Swabian (German)
DESCRIPTION: Biss Narro (clown) mask
CATALOG ID: EUDE005
MAKER: Helmut Kramer (Rottweil, 1931-2016)
CEREMONY: Fasnet (Carnival)
AGE: 1999
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil paint; horsehair; satin ribbons; mirrors; metal buttons

In many parts of Swabia and Bavaria, Carnival (usually called Fasnet or Fastnet in this region of Germany) is celebrated with parades of masked clowns (Narren).  The clown parade (Narrensprung) is organized by guilds, all members of which wear similar costumes and masks.  Each town has its own guilds, with some overlap in styles of Narro.  Like this one, most are creepy in an inimitably Germanic way. Their purpose is to usher in the spring with joy and laughter.

Carnival in Rottweil extends back at least to the 14th century, and the Biss is a longstanding character in the Fasnet of Rottweil. They appear in white linen costumes with as many as six leather belts holding large bells, which he makes ring by walking with a bouncy step (Jucken). The Biss also wears a horsehair wig (Rosshaarkranz) with ribbons and mirrors to satirize vanity, and frequently has a small feathered hat on top.

This specific mask was carved by the late master, Helmut Kramer of Rottweil.

Regrettably, the best texts on Carnival in Bavaria and Swabia are still available in German only: Heinz Wintermantel’s Hoorig, hoorig isch die Katz (Würzburg: Konrad Theiss, 1978) and Dick Eckert’s Die Werdenfelser Fasnacht und ihre Larven (Volk Verlag München, 2015).

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Juan Negro

TITLE: Juan Negro
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Hidalgo
ETHNICITY: Otomí
DESCRIPTION: Juan Negro (Cuanegro) Mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX030
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Juan Negro Dance Drama
AGE: ca. 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil-based paint

The Juan Negro (Black John) Dance Drama of the Hidalgo region tells a comic tale of a struggle between a Spanish colonist and his foreman over the love of a girl. It is sometimes spelled Juanegro or Cuanegro. The Spaniard, Juan Blanco (White John), wears a light-colored mask because of his life of shady ease, while the Juan Negro (a peasant) has dark skin from working in the sun.  In the end, Juan Blanco wins the girl, denoting the injustice the unequal wealth and power perpetuates.  For mysterious reasons, the girl is played by an unmasked man in a dress.

This specific mask was made in the Huastec region of Hidalgo. The dance is also performed in adjoining parts of Veracruz.

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Juan Blanco

TITLE: Juan Blanco
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Hidalgo
ETHNICITY: Otomí
DESCRIPTION: Juan Blanco (Cuablanco) Mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX032
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Juan Negro Dance Drama
AGE: ca. 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil-based paint

The Juan Negro (Black John) Dance Drama of the Hidalgo region tells a comic tale of a struggle between a Spanish colonist and his foreman over the love of a girl. It is sometimes spelled Juanegro or Cuanegro. The Spaniard, Juan Blanco (White John), wears a light-colored mask because of his life of shady ease, while the Juan Negro (a peasant) has dark skin from working in the sun.  In the end, Juan Blanco wins the girl, denoting the injustice the unequal wealth and power perpetuates.  For mysterious reasons, the girl is played by an unmasked man in a dress.

This specific mask was made in the Huastec region of Hidalgo. The dance is also performed in adjoining parts of Veracruz.

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Javanese Buto

TITLE: Javanese Buto
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Java
ETHNICITY: Javanese
DESCRIPTION: Buto (giant) mask
CATALOG ID: ASID028
MAKER: Ganuh Nugroho AdiNarimo (Surakarta, 1966- )
CEREMONY: Topeng Dance Drama
AGE: 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: pule wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint; leather strap

The Topeng dance drama of the island of Java centers around the political history of the region and are called Babad Dalem (Chronicles of the Kings) or Raket. The most popular story centers around the national hero Panji, whose consort Dewi Chandrakirana is abducted by the powerful King Klana Sewandana of Bantarangin.

This specific mask represents a character known as Buto, a demon-giant who plays the role of antagonist to the hero Panji.  It is used most commonly in the Cirebon Topeng in West Java.  The mask would be worn by the masquerader biting down on the leather strap to hold the mask in place. This leaves the character mute throughout the performance.

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Dayak Hudoq

TITLE: Dayak Hudoq
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Oceania
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Borneo
ETHNICITY: Dayak
DESCRIPTION: Hudoq Mask
CATALOG ID: OCID001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Agriculture; Purification
FUNCTION: Agriculture; Purification
AGE: ca. 1980s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: wicker; nails; paint

The Hudoq is part of a ceremony to drive pests away from fields during planting season and ensure a fertile harvest. The Hudoqs, wearing brightly colored masks and costumes made from banana leaves, try to frighten the spectators, who represent pest-spirits.  As such, the more grotesque masks were favored.  Heavy bronze earrings would dangle from its ears to add further motion and sometimes noise to the Hudoq’s movements.  They were worn with a wicker cap filled with hornbill feathers (missing on this specimen) and held to the face using a bite stick. They dance in large groups to drums.

Hudoqs might also be enlisted by shamans for healing rituals, to scare away the source of illness.

Hudoqs take different forms.  This one is part hornbill and part demon, and is a well known mask type among the Dayak.

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Nuna Hornbill Mask

TITLE: Nuna Hornbill Mask
TYPE: crest mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Burkina Faso
ETHNICITY: Nuna
DESCRIPTION: Horanbill Mask
CATALOG ID: AFBF002
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Adult Initiation; Divination; Entertainment; Funeral; Purification; Spirit Invocation
AGE: 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: kaolin; pigment

The Nuna and related Nunuma people inhabit Burkina Faso and share with their neighbors, the Bwa and Winiama peoples, a highly geometrical masking style.  There are two major types of masks used by the Nuna peoples. Sacred masks (wankr) are said to have descended from the sky and are danced with weapons in their hands in important ceremonies only.  When not being worn, they are used as sacrificial altars. Revealed masks dance only on ritual occasions.

Other masks (wamu), such as this one, are created by villagers for specific purposes.  Animal masks are danced in mimicry of the animal itself.  Unlike wankr dancers, wamu dancers carry only whips and are mainly used for entertainment and funerals.

All masks may be used for spirit invocation, boys initiation ceremonies, village purification, or divination.

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Ticuna Shaman Mask

TITLE: Ticuna Shaman Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Brazil
SUBREGION: Amazonas
ETHNICITY: Ticuna
DESCRIPTION: Shaman Mask
CATALOG ID: LABR004
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Adult Initiation
AGE: ca. 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: bark cloth; plant fiber; pigment

The Ticuna people of the Amazon rain forest populate large parts of the Amazonas state of Brazil, as well as parts of Colombia and Peru.  Brazil finally recognized the Ticuna right to control over some of their historic lands in 1990.  Men make and use all Ticuna masks, are used primarily in adult initiation rituals for girls and in funerals.  Funeral masks always represent animals that the deceased would want to hunt in the next life.  Human masks are part of a full body suit made of tapa (cloth made from pounded tree bark) and are danced at an elaborate ceremony for the initiation of girls into adulthood.  This specific mask was almost certainly made for the tourist trade.

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Commedia dell’Arte Capitano

TITLE: Commedia dell’Arte Capitano
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Europe
COUNTRY: Italy
ETHNICITY: Italian
DESCRIPTION: Capitano Cocodrillo (Captain Crocodile) mask
CATALOG ID: EUIT003
MAKER: Alan G. Newman (London, England, 1951- )
CEREMONY: Commedia dell’Arte; Carnival
AGE: 2012
MAIN MATERIAL: leather
OTHER MATERIALS: pigment; goat hair; elastic strap

The Commedia dell’Arte was a form of public entertainment that succeeded the classical Roman theater in Italy.  Like classical theater, Commedia performers wore leather masks to represent stock characters and often performed in amphitheaters to large audiences.  However, the Commedia differed in having only a very basic plot sketch, with most of the lines invented extemporaneously by the actors.  The Commedia‘s ability to stay topical and its frequent resort to vulgar humor, combined with the considerable talent of Italian troupes that traveled throughout Europe, made this form of theater extremely popular throughout the early 17th to late 19th centuries. Masked actors had to compensate for their inability to convey facial emotion through posture, gesture, and vocal nuance.

The Capitani were long among the most popular stock characters of the Commedia. Different acting troupes used different captains.  They all had comical or evocative names, such as Spavento della Valle Inferna (Captain Fear of Hell’s Valley), Matamoros (Captain Moor-Killer), or Sangue y Fuego (Captain Blood-and-Fire).  The captain masks were originally flesh-colored, with a menacing nose to represent a bullying personality.

This specific Capitano represents Cocodrillo (Crocodile) and comes from classically trained mask maker Alan G. Newman.

To learn more about Commedia dell’Arte, see Pierre Louis Duchartre, The Italian Comedy (Dover Pubs., 1966).

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Mah Meri Moyang Jantong

TITLE: Mah Meri Moyang Jantong
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Malaysia
ETHNICITY: Orang Asli (Senoi)
DESCRIPTION: Moyang Jantong (Banana Plant Spirit) Mask
CATALOG ID: ASMY001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Celebration; Spirit Invocation
AGE: 1970s
MAIN MATERIAL: blackboard wood
OTHER MATERIALS: metal; cotton string

The Mah Meri tribe belongs to the Senoi people, one of the indigenous peoples (Orang Asli) of Malaysia. They have traditionally carved masks from the wood of the blackboard tree (Alstonia scholaris) for use in celebrating festive occasions, such as weddings. The masks embody benevolent spirits that, in the animistic pantheon of the Mah Meri, are used to drive away evil, soul-stealing spirits.  This mask, Moyang Jantong, represents the spirit of the banana plant, an important source of food to the Mah Meri.

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Topeng Jauk Manis

TITLE: Topeng Jauk Manis
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Bali
ETHNICITY: Balinese
DESCRIPTION: Jauk Manis Putih
CATALOG ID: ASID005
MAKER: Ida Wayan Muka (Mas Ubud, 1971- )
CEREMONY: Calonarang Dance
AGE: ca. 2000
MAIN MATERIAL: pule wood
OTHER MATERIALS: dyed silk hair; gold-plated silver; glass; abalone shell; oil paint

The Calonarang Dance, named after its main antagonist, recreates a contest between good (represented by the Barong and its followers) and evil (represented by the goddess of death, Rangda, and her followers). This specific mask represents a character type known as Jauk Manis. Jauk Manis is not a specific character but can be used to represent a variety of antagonists, such as malevolent giants, cruel kings, or hostile demons.

For more on Balinese masks, see Judy Slattum, Masks of Bali: Spirits of an Ancient Drama (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1992).

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