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Thai Khon Mask Ramakian Dance, Thailand 16 inches, painted papier mache, with gold gilt and small mirrors The Khon dramas are well known for their gorgeous costumes with richly gilded crowns and colorful masks. Each character in the Ramayana, or Ramakian as it is known in Thailand, has a different costume and headdress. There are more than a hundred support characters and most of them wear different styles of masks and headdresses which are lavishly decorated. These dramas are not unlike those of Bali and Java, involving characters such as Hanuman, Rama, Sita and many others also portrayed in Indonesia. The making of these masks is an art form that can take many days of detailed work. The first stage is the moldings of a plaster form to the size and shape of the actor’s head. On to this is applied many layers of papier mache in order to build up the character’s features. Up to 20 layers of paper are glued on to the form, then the surface is dried and smoothed. The mask is then cut away from the form, the two halves begin rejoined by sewing with fine wire. A final layer of papier mache is added, holes made for eyes and mouth, and the decoration finished using paint, lacquer, gold leaf and colored glass fragments. Illustrated in the book, "Masks from Around the World." SOLD
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