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Woodwork
Raven Dance Mask
Kwakwaka'wakw artist, (active )
Kwakwaka'wakw artist
Canada
56 in. (142.2 cm)
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Wood, pigment
Wood, pigment
Kwakwaka'wakw; made in British Columbia, Canada
mid 19th century
1833
1866
birds, masks (sculpture), Native American, Native American art, religious & ritual objects
Woodwork
This mask represents Raven, one of the creatures most important to the Kwakwaka’wakw people. Known to be quick learners, aggressive defenders of territory, and very social with one another, ravens have been a respected clan emblem for centuries. Raven masks are worn during a portion of the hamatsa, an initiation masquerade for young men. Following a choreographed sequence, with beaks projecting upward and masks moving wildly from side to side, the hinged lower jaw of the mask is manipulated with a cord. When the cord is pulled, the mask responds with a loud clacking sound – the “hap, hap” of the birds’ voices – adding to the dramatic effect of the performance.
Hamatsa is performed at Kwakwaka’wakw potlatches. Potlatches are traditional cross-clan celebrations including dancing, feasting and magnanimous distribution of gifts held to honor births, marriages, deaths and other changes in social relationships. Potlatches continue to this day, despite attempts to ban them by both the Canadian and United States governments in the late 19th century.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
1964.111
item
Memorial Art Gallery
11/21/2000
64.111TR1
transparency
4 x 5
00/00/00
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64.111SL1
slide
full
2 x 2
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glossy
8 x 10
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negative
8 x 10
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negative
3 x 5
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64.111SL2
slide
detail of eye
2 x 2
00/00/00
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64.111DI2
digital image
Inhouse58
4 x 5
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/64.111_A2.jpg
64.111DI1
digital image
4 x 5
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/64.111_A1.jpg
64.111DI3
digital image
TRC4
00/00/00
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Sculpture
Bird Mask
Gurunsi artist, (active )
Gurunsi artist
11 x 33 in. (27.9 x 83.8 cm)
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Wood
Wood
Gurunsi; made in Ghana
0
0
African art, birds, Gurunsi, masks (sculpture), woodwork
Sculpture
1971.63
item
Memorial Art Gallery
3/10/2001
71.63SL1
slide
2 x 2
00/00/00
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71.63DI1
digital image
From left side
6/30/2009
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/71.63_A1.jpg
71.63DI2
digital image
From right side
6/30/2009
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/71.63_A2.jpg
Jewelry
Pendant Amulet (Ikhoko)
Western Pende artist, (active )
Western Pende artist
Democratic Republic of the Congo
2 1/4 x 1 1/4 x 1 in. (5.7 x 3.2 x 2.5 cm)
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Ivory
Ivory
Western Pende; made in Democratic Republic of the Congo
0
0
1900-2000, African, African art, amulets, heads, jewelry, masks, masks (sculpture)
Jewelry
This amulet was worn around the neck of a young Pende man beginning with his initiation into the men’s secret society and remaining as a part of his personal adornment for life. This face is a smaller version of the masks worn during initiation and would later act as a reminder to the wearer of the moral codes instilled in those formative ceremonies.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
Western Pende Jewelry; Made in Democratic Republic of the Congo
1951.114
item
Memorial Art Gallery
3/10/2001
51.114SL1
slide
full
2 x 2
00/00/00
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negative
5x7
00/00/00
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glossy
2 x 2
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negative
2 x 2
00/00/00
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glossy
8x10
00/00/00
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51.114DI1
digital image
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/51.114_A1.jpg
Sculpture
Face Mask
Nuxálk artist, (active )
Nuxálk artist
Canada
29 1/2 x 18 x 11 in. (74.9 x 45.7 x 27.9 cm)
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Wood
Wood
Nuxálk; made in Canada
0
0
1800-1900, masks (sculpture), Native American, Native American art
Sculpture
The Nuxalkmc (Nuxálk people) were once referred to as the "Bella Coola." Their homeland and territory are located in and around the Bella Coola valley on the central coast of what is now known as British Columbia, Canada. A rugged inland area located 75 miles from the Pacific Ocean, the region features high mountains rising steeply from the shores of inlets. Nuxálk traditional stories are filled with fabulous beings, many human in form and represented by masked performers in ceremonial dance dramas. Both natural and commercial pigments were used in the decoration of masks, and the characteristic blue, vermilion and black painting is dramatic and distinctive. Very little is known about this mask that is too large to have been worn.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
1984.45
item
Memorial Art Gallery
3/10/2001
84.45SL1
slide
full frontal
2 x 2
00/00/00
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glossy
8x10
00/00/00
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negative
4x5
00/00/00
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84.45DI1
digital image
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/84.45_A1.jpg
84.45SL2
slide
full back
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Graphics/blank.gif
84.45DI#2
digital image
6/18/2008
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/84.45_A2.jpg
84.45DI3
digital image
Back
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/84.45_A3.jpg
Sculpture
Face Mask
New Caledonian artist, (active )
New Caledonian artist
New Caledonia
15 1/4 x 6 3/4 x 3 1/4 in. (38.7 x 17.1 x 8.3 cm)
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Wood
Wood
0
0
1900-2000, masks (sculpture), Oceanic, Oceanic art (Pacific Islands)
Sculpture
1949.92
item
Memorial Art Gallery
3/20/2001
49.92SL1
slide
full frontal
2 x 2
00/00/00
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glossy
8x10
00/00/00
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negative
2 x 2
00/00/00
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glossy
2 x 2
00/00/00
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49.92DI1
digital image
full frontal
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/49.92_A1.jpg
49.92DI#2
digital image
6/18/2008
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/49.92_A2.jpg
Basketry
Body Mask
Papua New Guinean artist
Papua New Guinean artist
Papua New Guinea
Primary
96 in. (243.8 cm)
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Cane
Cane
Papua New Guinean; made in Kararua District, Middle Sepik River Region
0
0
1900-2000, masks (sculpture), Oceanic, Oceanic art (Pacific Islands)
Basketry
In earlier times, masks like this one were used in traditional initiation ceremonies in which young boys became men. Skulls of ancestors sometimes adorned the masks to reinforce their role as benevolent ancestral spirits. The dancer would have looked out of the eyes of the lower face and treated as handles the holes hidden below the small patches of grass.
As it was created in the 20th century, we know this body mask was made by artists specifically for sale. Even as social changes affect a culture, the traditional arts of a people can become representations of ethnic identity and potent symbols of familiar values and vaunted ideals of an earlier time. This mask was made by people living on the Sepik River, the major trade and communications artery of Papua New Guinea. Today, it is on the Sepik that most westerners experience Papua New Guinea as cruise lines travel up and down the river, stopping at villages where local artists sell their work.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
1973.138
item
Memorial Art Gallery
3/20/2001
73.138SL1
slide
3/4 View
2 x 2
00/00/00
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glossy
full
8 x 10
00/00/00
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negative
full
4 x 5
00/00/00
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73.138SL2
slide
full frontal
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Graphics/blank.gif
73.138DI1
digital image
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/73.138_A1.jpg
73.138DI2
digital image
2 x 2
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/73.138_A2.jpg
73.138DI3
digital image
00/00/00
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/73.138_A3.jpg
73.138DI#4
digital image
Three-quarter
3/10/2009
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/73.138_A4.jpg
Sculpture
Fire Spitter Mask
Senufo artist, (active )
Senufo artist
Côte d'Ivoire
Primary
33 1/2 x 11 x 9 1/2 in. (85.1 x 27.9 x 24.1 cm)
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overall
Wood
Wood
Senufo; made in Côte d'Ivoire
0
0
African art, masks (sculpture), Senufo
Sculpture
underside, Base coat: Acryloid B-72 in Acetone
Accession number: Golden Fluid Acrylics (white)
2003.101
item
Memorial Art Gallery
9/9/2003
2003.101DI#1
digital image
Front
8/8/2007
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/Inventory pictures/2003.101_I1.jpg
2003.101DI#1
digital image
10/7/2008
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/2003.101_A1.jpg
Sculpture
Miniature Mask of the River God Acheloüs
Etruscan artist, (active )
Etruscan artist
Italy
Primary
2 3/16 x 1 7/16 x 3/8 in. (5.6 x 3.6 x 1 cm)
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overall
overall
Terracotta
Terracotta
600 BCE-401 BCE
600 BCE
401 BCE
1000 BCE - 500 CE, Etruscan, masks (sculpture), mythology, sculpture
Sculpture
The river god Acheloüs, spirit of the longest river in Greece, was represented as a bull, an animal often associated with fast-flowing water.
[Gallery label text]
2023.17
item
Memorial Art Gallery
11/19/2007
T705DI#1
digital image
Front
11/13/2007
http://127.0.0.1:5000/Media/images/T705_A1.jpg