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Punu Mukudj

TITLE: Punu Mukudj
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Gabon
ETHNICITY: Punu
DESCRIPTION: Mwiri Society Mukudj Mask
CATALOG ID: AFGA006
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Mwiri Society
FUNCTION: Adult Initiation; Funeral; Secret Society; Spirit Invocation
AGE: ca. 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: kaolin clay; pigment

The Punu people of Gabon and Republic of Congo live in small villages, mainly along the Ogowe River Basin. They are a matrilineal people organized into hereditary chiefdoms. Like most of the peoples of central and northwest Africa, they have animistic religious beliefs.  Within every Punu village is the Mwiri Society, a secret men’s organization whose members alone may craft masks. Masks serve many important functions in Punu society, including social control and purification of evil spirits and witchcraft.  The mukudj mask (also called okuyi, mokoi, ukuyi, mokoi or mbwanda) simultaneously represents an ancestor spirit and an idealized woman. The diamond pattern on the forehead and squares on the temples represent the scarification marks common among Punu women and emphasize the symmetry of the face. The mukudj is danced by male members of the Mwiri Society on very tall stilts at births, funerals, initiation ceremonies for adulthood, and other major social events to invoke the approval of ancestor spirits.

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Catrín Mask

TITLE: Catrín Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Tlaxcala
ETHNICITY: Nahua
DESCRIPTION: Catrín (dandy) mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX141
MAKER: Pedro Amador Reyes Juárez (Tlatempán, 1939-1999)
CEREMONY: Carnival
AGE: 1960s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil-based paint; glass eyes; cattle hair eyelashes; gold foil; metal hardware; cotton string; leather straps

Carnival in Tlaxcala, Mexico has traditions quite different from those in other parts of the country.  In the city of Tlaxcala, men dress in formal suits, gloves, and top hats, with extremely realistic and handsome Spanish-type masks, and in some towns carry umbrellas through the streets as parasols.  The catrín, or dandy, is a figure of ridicule dating back to colonization, when elaborately dressed Spaniards flaunted their wealth to the oppressed indigenous peoples. The catrín is the indigenous revenge, possible because the masks and costumes made it difficult to identify the culprits.  Frequently the masks have gold teeth and beauty marks, like this one, and include an ingenious spring mechanism attached to a string, which allows the masquerader to blink the dandy’s eyes by pulling on the string.  The masks of Tlaxcala are some of the only known mechnical masks in Latin America. Glass eyes were imported into Tlaxcala for mask-making around 1960.

In the past, the catrínes paired up with dancers known as nanas, who were male dancers dressed as elegant Spanish ladies and wearing a delicately-carved female mask.

Masks of this type are frequently delicately carved and hand-painted by master craftsmen in multiple layers.



A brief documentary about Carnival in the state of Tlaxcala, Mexico.

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Lega Idimu Mask

TITLE: Lega Idimu Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Congo, Democratic Republic of
ETHNICITY: Lega
DESCRIPTION: Idimu Mask
CATALOG ID: AFCD001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Bwami Society
FUNCTION: Adult Initiation; Secret Society; Status
AGE: ca. 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: kaolin clay

The Lega people of the Democratic Republic of Congo use masks in a very wide variety of ways, but primarily for initiation into adulthood and to confirm status. The Bwami Society exercises authority over many aspects of social and religious life, including initiation.  All Lega masks are therefore Bwami Society masks. Small masks (lukwakongo) are used for identification and worn on the body or are hung on a fence to represent children of the ancestors. Larger masks, such as this idimu (ancestor) mask, are worn on the face or back of the head, and can only be worn by men belonging to the two highest ranks of the Bwami Society (Yananio and Kindi).

For more on Lega masking traditions, see Daniel Biebuyck, Lega Culture: Art, Initiation, and Moral Philosophy among a Central African People (University of California Press, 1973).

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Maria Mask

TITLE: Maria Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Guatemala
SUBREGION: Chichicastenango
ETHNICITY: Mayan (K’iché)
DESCRIPTION: María Típica (common María) mask
CATALOG ID: LAGT030
MAKER: Miguel Ángel Ignacio Ventura (Chichicastenango, 1960- )
CEREMONY: Baile Típico (Baile Regional)
AGE: late 1970s
MAIN MATERIAL: cedar wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint

The Baile Típico (Typical Dance), also known as the Baile Regional, of Chichicastenango is performed on major holidays by a large group of masked men, half of whom are dressed as women. Following leaders whose masks hold whistles to signal the group, they travel around the town, blocking the street wherever they go and dancing in weaving lines according to rehearsed choreography.   This mask is the female character, Maria (in effect, Jane Doe), that represents all the “female” dancers.  It was carved by the owner of a popular morería (mask and costume rental workshop), Miguel Ángel Ignacio Ventura, in the late 1970s.

For more on Guatemalan masks, see Jim Pieper, Guatemala’s Masks and Drama (University of New Mexico Press, 2006).

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Pastorela Asmodeo

TITLE: Pastorela Asmodeo
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Michoacán
ETHNICITY: Purépecha
DESCRIPTION: Asmodeo (Asmodeus) devil mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX055
MAKER: Victoriano Salgado Morales (Uruapan, 1920-2012)
CEREMONY: Pastorela
AGE: ca. 1970s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: blanco de españa; maque; bull horns; sheep’s teeth

The Pastorela is the ceremonial dance drama performed in many parts of Mexico, including the state of Michoacán. Pastorelas, performed primarily at Christmas, or sometimes in February during the Shrovetide season, are primarily religious in significance. The main characters of the Dance of the Shepherds are the Devil and his minions, the Archangel Michael, shepherds, and a hermit (who paradoxically represents the ancestors of the performers).  The drama revolves around the attempts of Lucifer and his demon minions to steal the baby Jesus.  Other dramas performed on the occasion include the Dance of the Negritos (dance of the little blacks), relating to the importation of African slaves into Mexico by the Spaniards, and which includes an army of elegantly dressed “little Maries” (Maringuillas), and feos, or ugly clowns.

This mask represents one of three chief devils, specifically Asmodeo (Asmodeus). In Christian and Jewish mythologies, Asmodeus is one of the seven princes of Hell, and represents the vice lust.  It was carved by the master mask-maker of Uruapan, Victoriano Salgado.

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Sardinian Issohadore

TITLE: Sardinian Issohadore
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Europe
COUNTRY: Italy
SUBREGION: Mamoiada, Sardinia
ETHNICITY: Italian (Sardinian)
DESCRIPTION: Issohadore mask
CATALOG ID: EUIT007
MAKER: Ruggero Mameli (Mamoiada, 1954- )
CEREMONY: Carnival
AGE: 2010
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil-based paint; leather straps; metal hardware

The people of Sardinia celebrate Carnival with a unique tradition whose origin is the subject of much debate. Most participants in the Carnival parade in the region of Mamoiada wear costumes and masks of one of two characters: the Issohadore and Mamuthone. The Issohadores dress in a bright military costume and wear a white mask. Soha in Sardinian means “lasso,” which is what the Issohadores carry to encircle and abduct young women in the crowd while they guard the troop of black-masked Mamuthones. Some hypothesize that the Issohadore represents the Spanish conqueror of Sardinia in 1717, and the Mamuthones represent the oppressed Sardinian peasantry. Although the Carnival tradition seems to be much older, it may have been shaped by these historical events.

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Mah Meri Moyang Kuhau

TITLE: Mah Meri Moyang Kuhau
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Malaysia
ETHNICITY: Orang Asli (Senoi)
DESCRIPTION: Moyang Kuhau (natural spring spirit) mask
CATALOG ID: ASMY002
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 Kuhau, represents the spirit of a natural spring or well, an important source of fresh water to the Mah Meri.

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Makonde Lipiko Mask

TITLE: Makonde Lipiko Mask
TYPE: crest mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Mozambique
ETHNICITY: Makonde
DESCRIPTION: Lipiko mask with no hair
CATALOG ID: AFMZ001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Mapiko
USE: Adult Initiation; Funeral; Spirit Invocation
AGE: ca. 1960s-1970s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: natural pigment

The Makonde people inhabit the bordering region of Tanzania and Mozambique. They are a matrilineal society divided into clans governed by a chief and council. The Makonde are known as some of the most expert mask carvers in Africa, with two kinds of masks prevalent in their society.  This mask, known as a lipiko, is a helmet mask used primarily for the mapiko dance held at adult initiation rituals for boys and girls and at funerals. The masquerader channels the spirit of dead ancestors through the mask.  During initiation, boys and girls are both taught how to make the masks and perform them.  Women perform their initiation away from the males, who never see the masquerade.

This mask came from the Mozambique region of Makonde territory and was danced in the 1960s or 1970s. Originally, this mask had hair shavings attached with beeswax to the depressed and darkened part of the forehead, but this feature was lost over time, beeswax not being an especially durable fixative in hot climates.

For more on the Makonde mapiko ceremony, see Paolo Israel, In Step with the Times: Mapiko Masquerades of Mozambique (Athens, OH: Ohio University Press 2014)

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Javanese Klana

TITLE: Javanese Klana
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Java
ETHNICITY: Javanese
DESCRIPTION: King Klana Sewandana Mask
CATALOG ID: ASID029
MAKER: Ganuh Nugroho AdiNarimo (Surakarta, 1966- )
CEREMONY: Topeng Dance Drama
AGE: 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: pule wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint; hair; 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 King Klana and is used most commonly in the Cirebon Topeng in West Java.  It was carved and painted by the master craftsman Ganuh AdiNarimo of Solo (also known as Surakarta), 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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Javanese Hanuman

TITLE: Javanese Hanuman
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Java
ETHNICITY: Javanese
DESCRIPTION: Hanuman (Monkey King) mask
CATALOG ID: ASID036
MAKER: Ganuh Nugroho AdiNarimo (Surakarta, 1966- )
CEREMONY: Wayang Wong
AGE: 1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: pule wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint

The Wayang Wong dance drama of the island of Java centers on the Hindu epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. These epics revolve around the god Rama and his battle with the demon king Ravana, who has abducted Rama’s wife. In the end, Rama retrieves her with the help of the wily monkey god, Hanuman.

This specific mask represents Hanuman and was carved and painted by the master craftsman Ganuh AdiNarimo of Solo (also known as Surakarta), Java. Normally, a leather strap would be attached on the inside at the mouth prior to performance, so that the actor can bite down on the strap to hold the mask to his face.

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