Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Bali or Java, ca. 19th to early 20th century CE. Three hand-carved wooden masks known as "topeng" - the Indonesian word for mask - which is worn during the dramatic dances enacted in Bali and to a lesser extent Java that depict traditional stories of kings, deities, heroes, and myths. In these dances, the entire story is performed by only four or five actors playing all the parts, both male and female. As a result, actors will have around forty masks. These have great signs of age and possibly date to 19th century or earlier! Size of elephant mask: 7.5" L x 6" W (19 cm x 15.2 cm)

Provenance: private Constance McCormick Fearing estate, Montecito, California, USA, acquired before 2004

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#181076

Chips and abrasions to painted pigments. Discoloration and staining. Old losses and stable pressure fissure on the green mask, and piece of plastic added to stabilize a crack on the elephant mask. Great signs of age and patina on all three.