All photos courtesy of the Museo de las Americas, and descriptions courtesy of Tessa Harvey.
These three masks are part of the Feldman Collection. They are from Mexico and made of coconut. They were made in the 20th century and are strictly decorative. Maruca [Salazar, Museo curator] says that they no long make masks like these anymore.
This is a devil mask and is one of the more contemporary pieces at Museo. It is made from paper mache by Miguel Caraballo in 1993. It would be used in a variety of dances in Puerto Rico.
This mask is part of the Mayer Collection and comes from 20th century Guatemala. It depicts a native of the Americas and would be used in the Dance of the Conquest.
This mask is part of the Hamilton Collection and is from 20th century Guatemala. This particular mask depicts the Spaniards and would be used in either the Dance of the Conquest or Dance of the Christians and Moors.
These masks are made of metal and are from Mexico. They are part of the Dawe Collection and are specifically used for decoration and were made in the 20th century.
This is actually not a part of the exhibition but I think it is a cool mask anyway. It is unfinished and now just used as decoration. If it was finished it would be used in the Dance of the Conquest. It is the leader of the Mayan people, you can tell that by the birds on his head. It is from the Arara Collection and from Guatemala. It was made in the 20th century.
This mask is part of the Museo de las Americas Collection. It was made in the 20th century and is from Bolivia. It was used in the Dance of the Negritos.
This whole costume is used as part of the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico. It is from the Arara Collection and was made and used during the 20th century.
This is a devil mask from Bolivia and it is part of Museo de las Americas' Collection. It is made of metal and from the 20th century. It represents the indigenous god Supay who was turned into a devil by the Spanish.
This mask is part of the Tragen Collection and is from Mexico. The mask was made in the 20th century and does not have one particular dance that it would be used for. As a devil there are multiple dances that would use it including Dance of Twenty-four Devils and Dance of the Negrito.
This mask is also part of the Tragen Collection and is from Mexico. It was made in the 20th century and is made from coconut. It is a decorative mask.
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