Turquoise Mask in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 2018

Mask

Date: A.D. 1200–1521

Geography: Mexico

Culture: Probably Mixtec (Ñudzavui)

Medium: Turquoise, wood, mother‑of‑pearl, shell (Spondylus princeps, Spondylus calcifer)

Dimensions: H. 9 7/16 × W. 6 1/4 × D. 3 1/8 in. (24 × 15.8 × 8 cm)

Classifications: Stone-Ornaments, Shell-Ornaments

Credit Line: MiBACT Museo delle Civiltà - Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico “L. Pigorini” (4213)

The face of this mask is framed by the jaws of a helmet in the shape of an animal’s head, with two intertwined xiuhcoatl (fire serpents). This type of turquoise was valued for its medicinal use and was worn or ingested by victims of lightning strikes. The quality of the crafting and the combination of turquoise with other materials likely indicates Mixtec manufacture. During the sixteenth century, this mask made its way to Europe and into the collection of Cosimo I de’ Medici, Duke of Florence.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/722093