Oaxaca

7 inches long, painted wood

Negritos are used in several dances throughout Mexico. The color black was associated with a number of powerful deities in the Pre-Hispanic pantheon. When the Spanish conquerors imported African slaves to work in their mines and plantations, they were regarded by many of the local Indians as superhuman figures possessing magical powers. A little small and without holes for straps, this mask has a crude, but wonderfully naive, paint job, even though it was probably made for sale.

SOLD