Gigaku Mask of Young Persian Boy (Taikōji)
This mask is for the role of the son of an old Persian widower in gigaku, a theatrical dance repertoire imported to Japan from continental Asia during the seventh century. The old man and his sons mime prayers to the Buddha. While the mask would cover the entire head of the actor, there are openings for the eyes, nostrils, and mouth.
Details
- Palette
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- Dimensions
- overall: height 0.28 m, width 0.21 m, depth 0.185 m
- Origin
- Japan, Nara period (710–94)
- Department
- Japanese Art
- Holding institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image provider
- cleveland-museum-of-art
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- John L. Severance Fund
Art Genome Taxonomy
11 tags
Subject Matter
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Performing Arts Metadata · 96%
The object belonged to gigaku, a theatrical dance repertoire, and was used as part of a performed character.
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Face Both · 98%
The image presents a human face, while the title identifies the represented character as a young boy.
Visual Qualities
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Symmetrical Visual · 98%
The frontal face is organized around a strong vertical axis, with closely balanced eyes, ears, cheeks, nose, and mouth.
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Highly Detailed Visual · 90%
The carved and painted surface includes articulated brows, eyelids, nose, cheeks, lips, ears, hairline, and chin.
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Earth Tones Visual · 91%
The visible palette is dominated by muted red-brown, black, gray, and pale earthy tones across the worn surface.
Medium and Techniques
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Sculpture Metadata · 99%
The museum classifies the object as sculpture; the image shows a three-dimensional, carved and modeled head form.
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Polychrome Sculpture Metadata · 98%
The catalog describes a painted wooden mask with a modeled, polychrome surface.
Time Periods
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500 - 1000 CE Art Metadata · 99%
The work is dated 710–794, placing it within the catalog's 500–1000 CE period.
Geographic Regions
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Japanese Art Metadata · 99%
The catalog identifies the object as Japanese Art and gives Japan as its place of origin.
Materials
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Wood Metadata · 100%
The catalog specifies paulownia wood as the primary material.
Antiquities, Artifacts, and Religious Objects
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Mask Metadata · 100%
The title and description explicitly identify the object as a gigaku mask intended to cover the actor's head.
Source & rights
Unknown artist. Gigaku Mask of Young Persian Boy (Taikōji). Cleveland Museum of Art.