Late 19th C. Chinese Wooden Yao Priest / Shaman Mask
East Asia, China to northern Thailand, ca. late 19th century CE. A hand-carved wooden Yao mask with a hollow verso meant to be worn by a priest or shaman. The expressive countenance is painted with brown pigment and bears leather patches lined with dark brown horsehair on the eyebrows, mustache, and goatee. The face features diagonally slanted eyes with narrow pupils flanking the slender nose, vertical slits comprising the teeth inside the smiling mouth, and incised grooves for the nasolabial folds on either cheek. An intricate headdress with a zigzagging lower lining and diamond-shaped protrusions presents in front of a tubular central projection. Yao masks are typically worn or carried during ritual ceremonies and are meant to drive away bad spirits and evil magic. Lucite display stand for photography purposes only. Size: 6.625" W x 13" H (16.8 cm x 33 cm)
Provenance: private Johnson collection, Los Angeles, California, USA
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#137323
Condition Report: Losses to hide patches on one eyebrow, mustache, and chin as shown. Nicks and abrasions to face, top element, peripheries, and verso, with fading to pigment, and light encrustations within some recessed areas. Nice remains of pigment and light earthen deposits throughout.
View it on
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
East Asia, China to northern Thailand, ca. late 19th century CE. A hand-carved wooden Yao mask with a hollow verso meant to be worn by a priest or shaman. The expressive countenance is painted with brown pigment and bears leather patches lined with dark brown horsehair on the eyebrows, mustache, and goatee. The face features diagonally slanted eyes with narrow pupils flanking the slender nose, vertical slits comprising the teeth inside the smiling mouth, and incised grooves for the nasolabial folds on either cheek. An intricate headdress with a zigzagging lower lining and diamond-shaped protrusions presents in front of a tubular central projection. Yao masks are typically worn or carried during ritual ceremonies and are meant to drive away bad spirits and evil magic. Lucite display stand for photography purposes only. Size: 6.625" W x 13" H (16.8 cm x 33 cm)
Provenance: private Johnson collection, Los Angeles, California, USA
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#137323
Condition Report: Losses to hide patches on one eyebrow, mustache, and chin as shown. Nicks and abrasions to face, top element, peripheries, and verso, with fading to pigment, and light encrustations within some recessed areas. Nice remains of pigment and light earthen deposits throughout.
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
