CHANCAY FACE MASK CENTRAL COAST, PERU, C. 1100... Lot 19

CHANCAY FACE MASK CENTRAL COAST, PERU, C. 1100 - 1300 A.D. carved wood, shell and hair, the broad face with bright red pigment, a prominent raised brow with rectangular nose below, the eyes with inset clam shell and hair as lashes, a simple groove mouth sits within a shallow recessed area running from the base of the nose to the lower jaw, a long wooden post below, raised on a bespoke mount (94cm tall mounted) Provenance: Private collection, United Kingdom, acquired at the below Sotheby's, November 20, 1995, lot 19 Note: With its geometric qualities - this mask was not intended as a portrait. Rather it presents the idealised codes of representation from ancient Chancay society, the simplicity of the features signifying the subjects’ status as a revered ancestor. The present example was used as a reference piece for the similar Chancay Face Post formerly of Pierre Matisse that sold for $37,500 at Sotheby’s New York, 13th May 2011.