~ Detail Photos ~

While it is true that the masks that arise from Nepal's animist inspired past don't have the meticulously defined canon of iconography and styles that the classic Buddhist and Hindu masks are subject to, those that have considerable familiarity with the middle hills masks would  none the less be unlikely to dispute the fact that there are certain recurring stylistic themes.  This mask is an example of one of these styles that occurs frequently enough that it approaches what I would define as a "genre".  Now, within this genre we see plenty of unique variation but we can generally define it as a flat or slightly concave, oval mask with minimalist carving of the facial features - with the only notable facial topography being a nose that often rises to fair prominence.   We have seen masks that would fall into this genre in some of the reputable publications on Himalayan masks, and I have noted them in various private collections of fine middle hills masks and indeed have offered a number of them in this web site.

This is a fine old example of this genre, with great patination that has built up over the years. There is an incised pattern across the brow and condition is excellent.