1895.36.11

Collection type

Object

Description

Mask used in dances performed for curing, carved with both eyes and mouth open and with holes beneath the eyes to enable the wearer to see [JN 15/07/2008]

Long description

Mask used in dances performed for curing, carved with both eyes and mouth open and with holes beneath the eyes to enable the wearer to see. The mask is painted with lines on the forehead and below the eye holes in red and black. The mouth has carved teeth. [SM 11/07/2008]

Geographical reference

Sri Lanka

Asia > Southern Asia > Sri Lanka

Cultural groups

Sinhalese

Person

Field collector Frederic(k) W. de Silva

PRM source Frederic(k) W. de Silva

PRM source Henry Luttrell Moysey

Date / Period

Date made: Before 1895

Date collected

By 1895

Acquisition information

Donated: 1895

Materials and processes

Material Wood Plant, Material Pigment, Process Carved, Process Painted, Process Perforated

Dimensions

Length: max 150 mm, Width: max 117 mm

Object numbers

Accession number: 1895.36.11

Research and responses

The following notes were taken during a visit on the 9th July 2008 by Mohan Daniel, a mask specialist from Sri Lanka. He noted that the masks were not always correctly identified with the relevant demon on the list in the RDF or the writing on the objects that was presumably written by Frederick De Silva before the objects were donated to the museum. It is unclear whether this was done deliberately to prevent the masks being used, or whether it was accidental. Mohan Daniel believes that this mask is incorrectly identified as "Bhuta Sanniya". However, further research will be necessary to determine which demon is represented. It is particularly hard to assign some masks to specific demons as they represented in different ways by different regional communities. He mentioned that masks like this were usually rubbed with an oil made from a now rare tree in Sri Lanka to act as an insect repellent. This oil leaves a shiny surface on the mask. Mohan Daniel believes that none of the masks in this collection [1895.36.1-18] were used, as they show no discolouration on the back of the mask and there are no holes to use to tie the mask onto the face. [JN 15/07/2008]

Associated publications

Illustrated in colour on page 332-333 of Les Maîtres du Désordres, edited by Josephine Chambonnière (Paris: Musée du quai Branly / Réunion des Musées Nationaux Grand Palais, 2012). Caption (same page): 'Dix-huit masques représentant les dix-huit maladies (Sri Lanka, avant 1895, 18 x 11,7 cm)'. (The eighteen masks in this collection are illustrated in accession number order, from left to right and from top to bottom of each page; the first nine on page 332 and the rest on page 333.) (Photocopy in RDF.) [FB 22/05/2013, JC 30 5 2013]

Search terms: Mask, Dance, Medicine, Religion, Medical Accessory