Masks and Masking

For at least 20,000 years, masking has been a mark of cultural evolution and an indication of magical-religious sophistication in society.
This book provides a comprehensive understanding of the mask as a powerful cultural phenomenon—a means by which human groupings attempted to communicate their dignity and sense of purpose, as well as establish a continuum between the natural and supernatural worlds. It addresses the distinctive environments within which masks flourished, and analyzes the mask as a manifestation of art, ethnology and anthropology.

Gary Edson, professor emeritus of museum science at the Center for Advanced Study of Museum Science and Heritage Management at the Museum of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, was executive director of the Museum for 25 years. The author of numerous books and articles on museum practices, he lives and works in Taiwan, R.O.C.

Gary Edson
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 267
Bibliographic Info: 130 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2009 [2005]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-4578-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1233-1
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      1

Introduction      5

1. Symbolic Mutilation      13

2. Substitute Faces      33

3. Cultural Signs      52

4. Ingenious Expression      70

5. Masks, Magic, and Power      92

6. Mystic Assumptions      110

7. Masks as Communal Symbols      127

8. Masks as Couriers of Myths      146

9. Shape-Shifting Faces      162

10. Somatic Metamorphosis      179

11. Dramatic Apparitions      196

12. Masking the Other Face      212

Notes to the Captions      221

Chapter Notes      223

Bibliography      235

About the Drawings      249

Index      255

“scholarly…invaluable”—Midwest Book Review.