Shaman mask

This Inupiat mask, carved from solid wood, features almond-shaped eyes, a triangular nose and a slight smile on a slightly convex face.
Inupiat masks are generally less elaborate than those of their culturally and ethnically related southeastern Yup’ik neighbors, and are made in the simple style seen here, usually large enough to cover the face alone.
In Inuit culture, the masks were used by a shaman (angakok), the only member of the community considered to have sufficient power to control the spirits of nature.
The masks enabled them to communicate with the spirits and understand their needs, in order to give recommendations on how to appease them.
The shaman’s advice often emphasized a carefully observed code of conduct that preserved a positive relationship with the spirits, on which the goodwill of the community depended.
The softness of the features and the serenity of the squinted eyes “suggest that this mask represents a spirit, not a human being” (Ray, Eskimo Masks, Art and Ceremony, p.198).

Price: €9,500