African masks

Bangende mask. Cotton, cowrie shell, beads, raffia, wood 
 Democratic Republic of Congo. From the collection of the Horniman Museum 

The only time I had a chance to have a closer look at African masks was during my visits to the British and Horniman Museums in London. The masks definitely left a strong impression on me...some looked really scary, some were beautiful in their own unique way and others struck with skillfulness and complexity of handicraft work. African masks are not something you can easily forget once you have seen them. Sometimes masks are a realistic representation of the human or animal head but more often they are carved in an exaggerated or distorted way designed to suggest a supernatural presence.

Traditional masks of Nepal

Traditional masks of Nepal can be devided into two sorts: "tribal" masks which belong to the ethnic groups such as Gurung, Magar, Tharu, Rai etc and which are also referred to as "shaman's" masks; and "classical" masks which represent Hindu and Buddhist gods and goddesses.

The classical Nepali masks always represent deities or demons and never the dead or the ancestors. Besides, masks are more often used in processions and in rituals rather than in theatrical performances.

There are three categories of masks: first, masks representing faces of gods which are worn by performers during ritual dances, a second category, masks which serve as ornamental motifs for decorating a temple, a chariot during a procession or a vase used as a ritual object. A third category includes masks in metal or stone representing faces of deities that are worshiped like statues. They are called statue-masks. The metal used for making them are silver, brass or bronze. These masks are often decorated with jewels and when not worshiped they are kept in a wooden box inside the temple.

Khon masks of Thailand

Khon masks on display at the Baiyoke Sky Hotel, Bangkok

The khon is a traditional mask play in Thailand which implies the wearing of masks by performers. The story that has been used for staging of the khon is the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Indian epic Ramayana. Staged in its entirety, the Ramakien is an immensely complex story with 138 episodes involving 311 different characters and taking more that 720 hours of continuous performance.
The mask is perhaps the most important characteristic of the khon, for through it more than any other thing else, one distinguishes the variety of roles.

Traditional masks of Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan tovil mask.  National Museum Scotland

In Sri Lanka traditional masks are not just show-pieces or curios to decorate apartments. Here they still have meaningful existence in rituals and performances. Masks worn during so called demon dances are called tovil masks. During a tovil ceremony the dancer has to impersonate the demon and to converse freely with the exorcist. So many of the masks worn in these ceremonies are only half-cut masks and do not cover the entire face and head. They are light and easy to talk through.
There is a specialized group of tovil masks called sanni masks. Many Sri Lankans believe that diseases are results of demonic activity and 18 demons that cause sicknesses are represented by the sanni masks. Among the 18 deseases are following: delirium, abdominal pain, blindness, lameness, dumbness, deafness and insomnia, paralysis, cold shivers, disease of the stomach, fainting, high fever.