TITLE: Koryak Spirit Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Russia
ETHNICITY: Koryak
DESCRIPTION: Spirit Mask (representing Kutcha?)
CATALOG ID: ASRU001
MAKER: “Nikobin” (Bulava, Kamchatka Peninsula)
CEREMONY: Unknown
FUNCTION: Agriculture/Hunting; Protection/Purification; Spirit Invocation
AGE: 1996
MAIN MATERIAL: cedar wood
OTHER MATERIALS: leather straps
The Koryak people of northeastern Russia use masks for several shamanic purposes. Typically, these masks are very simple and gaunt, unlike this example. They are used in ceremonies for the protection of the individual and community from harm and to ensure good hunting. Some of these masks represent the mythical figure Kutcha, a powerful trickster spirit that may take the form of a raven and that bridges the divide between the master spirits and human world.
