Mechanical Humanoid Mask

ca. 1880

Masks with human features represent ancestors, warriors and supernatural beings that transform into humans. The presence on the dance floor of venerable personages such as these point up the fluid boundaries between the past and present, and between the natural and supernatural realms. This mask has an articulated jaw and once had eyes that moved in the sockets.

Alder, red cedar bark, paint, cotton twine, wool cloth, and nails

14 x 7 1/2 x 5 1/4 in. (35.56 x 19.05 x 13.34 cm)

Gift of John H. Hauberg

91.1.22

Provenance: Micheal R. Johnson, Seattle, Washington, until 1971; John H. Hauberg, Seattle, Washington, 1971-1991; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington

Photo: Paul Macapia

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, The Box of Daylight, September 15, 1983 - January 8, 1984

Published ReferencesThe Spirit Within: Northwest Coast Native Art from the John H. Hauberg Collection, Seattle Art Museum, 1995, pg. 262

Holm, Bill, Box of Daylight: Northwest Coast Indian Art, Seattle Art Museum, University of Washington Press, 1983, no. 31, p. 34, illus.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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