mask (dance & live theatre)

Mask of one of the monkey army, Phra Ram's allies in the Ramakien, with a red face and wide open mouth with teeth in the upper and lower jaws, outlines painted in black. There are four small fangs in the upper jaw and two in the lower jaw. The inside of the mouth is painted with pink stripes across the upper palate. Surrounding the mouth is a raised green band painted with black stripes, probably representing hair. The nose is moulded into a snarl. The eyes are round with small round apertures towards the inside, surrounded by a green band with black striped markings ending in a downward curl. There are some red and white painted lines around the edges of the eyes and lower cheeks. Above the eyes, the eyebrows are raised green arches, painted in black striping which ends in protrusions which project upwards and outwards to either side. The cardboard or leather ears on both sides of the mask end in green flame-like shapes. An elaborate gilt lacquer band goes all around the top of the head, decorated with square pieces of mirror glass. At either side of the face a strip of gold band comes down ending in a protruding flame shape, apparently made of leather, and below is a similar gilt flame-shaped leather piece. The top of the head is decorated with painted white lines and has three pronounced ridges along the middle with small peaks along their lengths. The back of the head is painted blue with blue scrolling.

There is a paper label stuck inside the mask with the number 12 and a circular stamp on it.

Collection Information

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