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<\/a><\/p>\nI don’t know whether this mask originally had a gap in the teeth. Perhaps the gap was created by a dancer, to accommodate a cigarette or to enhance ventilation.<\/p>\n
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The mask came without information about the dance it served. The Calendario de Fiestas Populares<\/em>, published in 1988, reveals that at that time there were many towns in the State of Mexico that still included a variety of masked dances. A few of the most popular dances included Los Moros y Christianos, Los Santiagueros, Los Doce Pares de Francia, las Aztecas, Los Pastores, and los Concheros. In the Sierra de Puebla the Moros y Cristianos performance sometimes includes a figure wearng a skull mask and a skeleton costume. Dances more likely to have included this skull mask were also listed\u2014Todos Santos\/ The Day of the Dead, Semana Santa (Holy Week), and Los Tecuanes (the jaguar hunt) , in which death is one of the dance figures. In Amatepec, Estado de Mexico, a town just 20 miles from Luvianos, we find the Moros y Christianos and the Tecuanes dance; if we went a little further, there would be Semana Santa performances. So who knows what dance required this wonderful old mask.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n There is a small rectangular projection to represent the bridge of the nose.<\/p>\n This mask has a flat top and an equally flat chin.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is a rather flat mask- a hollow slab.<\/p>\n This mask is 8\u00bd inches tall, 6\u00bd inches wide, and 2 inches deep.<\/p>\n There is obvious staining from long use.<\/p>\n Under the right eye are the words Luvianos, Edo. Mex.<\/p>\n Next\u00a0 week we will continue to examine old skull masks from Mexico that are in the collection of a visitor to this blog from Sidney, Australia.<\/p>\n Bryan Stevens<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Today we will look at the last of my overlooked skull masks. I purchased this one from Spencer Throckmorton in December, 1995, in Manhattan. Written in ink on the back are the words\u2014Luvianos, Estado de Mexico. Luvianos is the name … Read More <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n