Oldest masks

The oldest-known masks are a series of Neolithic stone masks resembling human faces unearthed in the Judaean Desert/El Bariyah and Judaean/Al-Khalil Mountains region of Israel and Palestine that have been assessed to be circa 9,000 years old. Archaeologists have posited that they may represent ancestral spirits and were created during a period of great change as humans transitioned from a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle to a more agricultural-focused way of life. One of the finest examples with clear provenance originated from the south Hebron Hills area of the Palestinian West Bank (near the Israeli settlement of Pnei Hever), and came to light in early 2018.

Hewn from yellow-pink limestone, the Pnei Hever mask features two oval apertures as eyes, a small nose (with no holes) and a mouth slit, surrounded by etched teeth. The whole face has been carved with a high level of precision and has a smooth finish. Four smaller holes near the edges (two on each side) are speculated to have been used for bindings so the mask could be mounted to a wall or pole. The presence of these, in addition to the mask’s substantial weight and lack of nostril holes suggest it was likely not designed to be worn but as ornamentation, possibly for use in spiritual ceremonies.

Around 15 similar stone masks from what is known as the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period have been found to date, all believed to have been excavated in the mountainous region west of the Dead Sea. Only one so far was discovered in situ, recovered in pieces from a cave near Nahal Hemar in eastern Israel; the others have emerged from private collections or on the antiques market, or were recovered from looters.

Other examples of early masks globally include the Tongsam-dong shell masks of Busan, South Korea, which have been carbon-dated to c. 5000 BCE, making them around 7,000 years old. Other more widely accessible organic materials, such as wood, used widely to make masks are far more susceptible to insects and micro-organisms that cause decomposition, so surviving examples of these are considerably more recent. It’s known that in Ancient Egypt, from the Old Kingdom (c. 2700-2170 BCE) onwards, wood and a material known as “cartonnage” (papyrus/linen covered with plaster) were used to create funerary masks for mummies. Only royalty and the most elite nobles, like that most iconic mask of the “Boy King” Tutankhamun, would have been laid to rest with death masks made from more enduring materials like gold and precious stones.

Humanoid masks carved from driftwood and ivory by the Dorset people, uncovered from Bylot Island in Northwest Territories, Canada, have been dated to 500–1000 CE.

A pair of wooden Noh masks (used in the traditional Japanese theatre known as nogaku) date from the 14th century and may be the oldest surviving theatrical props. These two masks – depicting "Chichinojou" (a cheerful old man) and "Enmeikaja" (a young man) – belonged to the Konparu Troupe and continued to be used in its productions until the 1950s. Today they are part of the collection of the National Museum in Tokyo, Japan.