Ritual wooden mask with polychrome decoration

Description:

Mongolia, c. 1900
H. 54 cm
The mask, which probably depicts Mahakala, features eyes bulging out from beneath bushy eyebrows, a wide-open mouth revealing a double row of teeth and fangs, a beard framing the chin, and a head adorned with a tiara into which five separate, carved skull ornaments are set, as well as several textile tassels attached to the mask.
A significant German private collection of Tibetan art, assembled in the 1980s - Traces of age, partly chipped