Burial mask ·  Cis-Ural, Perm, Kama River, Evenki · ID: 3051899

Description

silver alloy (96 %), base

The oval mask is made of thinly hammered sheet silver, with cut-out eyes and mouth. The eyes and edge of the mask are surrounded with bulging repoussé dots. Pairs of drilled holes on the sides and another on the upper edge, probably for fastening.

These masks were placed on the body over a silk face cover. They are often made of silver, a revered sacred material, like the present example.

Comparable funeral masks from the Kama River region in the Urals have been published by Margolis, cf. Margolis, 2023, pp. 85 and 86. See also Ron Bronckers, 2021, p. 74, fig. 4 and p. 76, fig. 7.

The object Burial mask with the object ID 3051899 was last part of the auction Auction 104 at April 12, 2025 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house and had the lot number 190.

You can find more Masks and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on Asian art and Eurasian art.

Comparing literature

Margolis, Richard, Ancient Bronze Art and Ethnographic Objects from Siberia and the Urals, Seattle 2023 Ron Bronckers, "Masks of the Evenki and Magyar - New Connections", p. 79, fig. 13, in Tribal XXV:3-Number 100, Summer 2021, p. 72-81 Ivanov, S., Ancient Masks of Siberian Peoples, Leningrad 1975