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Shaman's mask. Evenki

Title:

Shaman's mask

Ethnic groups:

Evenki

Territory:

East Siberia

Date:

late 19th - early 20th cnetury

Material:

Copper, leather, cloth

Dimensions:

length 26.5; width 19.0

Number:

РЭМ 8761-8615

Collectors:

Museum of the Peoples of the USSR

Annotation:

A shaman's mask, carved from yellow copper, is a convex sheet of metal shaped like an oval of a human face, with openings for the eyes and mouth, nostrils, and a bulge for the nose, cheekbones, and forehead. A dotted line of holes runs along the contour of the mask's oval, around the mouth and eyebrows. The mask was worn by the shaman during rituals and served as a sacred amulet for the ancestor, who was fed and spoken to in order to achieve the desired result. A leather strap is threaded through an opening at the top of the mask for hanging it from a tent pole.

Albums:
Shamanic attributes of the Evenki‑Orochon people
Rus:
Маска шаманская. Эвенки