Haudenosaunee / Iroquois, Seneca style
1880
Basswood, tin, horsehair, shoestring, corn husk, and two tobacco bags
Mask height 11 in / 27.9 cm; height with hair 29 in / 73.7 cm
Provenance: Private Southern California collection; old collection label: “Iroquois 6/24/26 Grand River Joseph Jacobs”
This Seneca-style Iroquois mask dates to the late 19th century and combines carved basswood with tin elements, horsehair, shoestring, and corn husk. The added corn husk gives the piece a distinct surface quality among the related masks in this group, while the long hair extends the form well beyond the carved face. The construction shows a layered use of organic and practical materials, consistent with the handmade character of historic Haudenosaunee mask traditions.
Masks of this type are associated with Haudenosaunee ceremonial and healing traditions, though specific use should not be assigned without direct documentation. The old collection label naming Grand River and Joseph Jacobs provides useful early collecting history, dated June 24, 1926. The two tobacco bags on the reverse should be noted as an integral feature of the object and clearly shown in the photography.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Haudenosaunee / Iroquois, Seneca style
1880
Basswood, tin, horsehair, shoestring, corn husk, and two tobacco bags
Mask height 11 in / 27.9 cm; height with hair 29 in / 73.7 cm
Provenance: Private Southern California collection; old collection label: “Iroquois 6/24/26 Grand River Joseph Jacobs”
This Seneca-style Iroquois mask dates to the late 19th century and combines carved basswood with tin elements, horsehair, shoestring, and corn husk. The added corn husk gives the piece a distinct surface quality among the related masks in this group, while the long hair extends the form well beyond the carved face. The construction shows a layered use of organic and practical materials, consistent with the handmade character of historic Haudenosaunee mask traditions.
Masks of this type are associated with Haudenosaunee ceremonial and healing traditions, though specific use should not be assigned without direct documentation. The old collection label naming Grand River and Joseph Jacobs provides useful early collecting history, dated June 24, 1926. The two tobacco bags on the reverse should be noted as an integral feature of the object and clearly shown in the photography.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
